Book 16 - Epic Movie
by GailDunn2
Summary: WARNING: SOME ADULT CONTENT AND SITUATIONS. The quest to obtain the Tablets of the Realms begins in Egypt. The team is tested immediately as Castiel must decide how far he is willing to go in order to stop Lucifer.
1. Ask And You Shall Receive

BOOK I - WALK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN

Chapter 1 - Ask And You Shall Receive

Tommy and Sam had been talking for hours, bonding over beers and lore. Sam had showed Tommy most of the books in the library, and Tommy was astounded at the wealth of information these guys had at their fingertips. It was funny; a year or so ago, Tommy's faith in God and Angels had been wavering, and now look at him. In a secret bunker with a couple of average, ordinary Americans, who just happened to have all of this supernatural lore and just about every weapon known to man, and quite a few that weren't. What the hell had his life become?

But Cas had needed his help, and Tommy and Barry's Angel friend had told them the true reason that he needed it. Cas had felt that if he was going to expose him to the mysteries of the bunker and the inherent confidentiality of the place, his friend needed to know how vitally important what they were doing truly was. That was why Tommy was bringing full press credentials for both Sam and Dean, and he'd had no compunctions about bending the truth to do so. Lucifer, loosed upon the Earth, looking to start Armageddon? Yeah, Tommy didn't think so. Whatever Cas and Gail needed him to do, he was going to do.

Tommy had wanted Barry to come with him to the bunker, and Barry had almost said no. He still had so much to do ahead of the hotel's opening. But he just couldn't pass up the chance to see the Winchester brothers in their natural habitat. Not to mention another opportunity to see Cas and Gail, maybe get a few more details on the wedding.

But when Cas brought his Vancouver friends to the bunker, he disappeared again, saying he wasn't sure exactly when he and Gail would return. Tommy and Sam had fallen into "nerd talk", so Dean asked Barry if he wanted something to eat, and they went to the kitchen.

The men were paired off in this manner when Cas and Gail returned from their lessons with Crowley, and Gail ran down the hall once she found out that Barry was in the kitchen. He and Dean had finished eating, and now they were playing cards. Barry was giving Dean some pointers on his poker game. Barry hadn't been a supervisor all those years in the poker room without picking up quite a bit of information on how some of the best players operated, and he was sharing this with Dean now.

Gail gave Barry a big hug and a kiss, and then she sat down beside him at the table. "What are you guys doing?" she asked them.

"I've been showing Dean a few tricks of the trade," Barry told her.

"What I really want to know is how Cas manages to win so big every time," Dean grumbled. "There's got to be more to it than Angel crap."

"Well, good luck figuring that out," Barry said, smiling. "I've watched him and watched him, and I can't figure it out, either."

Gail poked Barry playfully. "Yeah, right," she teased him. "You've watched him because you wanted to study the way he plays. Not because he's so very, very good-looking."

"Well, the job did have its perks," Barry replied, grinning. He looked at Dean. "And then he goes and brings you and Sam there. It was a wonder I got any work done that day."

Dean gave Barry a double-take, and Barry raised his eyebrows innocently. "Sorry, Dean. Am I making you uncomfortable?"

Dean wasn't quite sure what to say to that. On the one hand, it was kind of weird to think that Barry might have been checking him out. But, on the other hand, it wasn't as if he'd grabbed Dean, or done anything inappropriate. And they'd been having a nice time here. Ever since Barry and Tommy had gotten here earlier today, there hadn't been any overt mention of their being gay at all. So, really, so what? Maybe Dean was truly becoming more enlightened in his old age. Besides, it seemed like Barry and Tommy were in a committed relationship, so Dean figured Barry was just making an effort to get along with his friends' friends.

"Nahhh," Dean said to Barry. "But at least tell me you would have picked me over those other two losers," he joked.

"Who's a loser?" Cas asked, strolling into the room.

Gail smiled at him. "Apparently, you are," she said.

"That's impossible," Cas said lightly. "I'm engaged to the most wonderful woman in the universe," he said, leaning down to kiss her on the forehead. He put his hand on Barry's shoulder in greeting.

Dean rolled his eyes. "All right, don't start, you two."

Gail looked at him, making a face. "Don't worry," she said. "That's pretty much it, until the wedding."

"I never thought you were that old-fashioned, Gail," Dean said to her.

"You're assuming that it was my idea," she retorted.

Dean looked at Cas, open-mouthed. Really? Was Cas nuts? The guy had been celibate since Creation. He'd just recently discovered the wonderful world of being intimate with a woman, and he'd put an engagement ring on the finger of the very first one who'd allowed him to do to her whatever the hell Angels did in the bedroom. Okay, fine. If Cas was happy, Dean was happy. But now he was actually electing to return to the Celibate Zone again, until the wedding night? What the hell was that all about? Some kind of weird Heaven crap, or something?

"It's the way I was raised, Dean, and Gail has kindly agreed to honour my request," Castiel told his friend.

Dean opened his mouth, then shut it, then opened it again. "Does that just apply to her, or does it apply to any women in general?"

"What do you mean?" Cas was puzzled by his question.

Barry was smirking. "I think he's thinking about the bachelor party he's planning on throwing for you," he told Cas.

"Ex-actly." Dean was really starting to like Barry.

Cas was looking at Dean suspiciously, eyes narrowed. "You had better not be talking about what I think you're talking about," he said.

Gail sat back in her chair, crossing her arms. "Yes, exactly what ARE you talking about, Dean?" she asked, raising an eyebrow to him.

"Come on, Gail, it's a bachelor party," Dean wheedled. "It's the only one he'll ever have. I'm sure Jody'll take you to see some male strippers, if you want."

"Why on earth would I want strippers at my party?" Cas asked Dean. "You know me better than that."

"It's not you who wants them, it's Dean," Gail said, rolling her eyes.

"Well then, he's just going to have to have his own bachelor party," Cas said lightly. "There won't be anything like that going on at mine. I promise you that, Gail."

She gave a half-shrug. "Hey, it's not up to me, it's up to you. Never let it be said that I stood in the way of anyone's good time."

"In that case, could you bring me, when you go to see the male strippers?" Barry quipped.

Gail laughed, but Cas said, "No, you and Tommy will be coming to my party, of course."

Dean let out a frustrated breath. He should have figured Cas would put the kibosh on the strippers, but he'd had to try. To be fair, Gail had never said that she didn't approve; it was Cas who was being such a prude about it. So he guessed the party would be a sausage-fest, then.

"What do you think, Barry?" Dean said. "You can help me put something together, if you want. Food, drinks, cigars, maybe?"

"How about a poker tournament?" Barry asked. He smiled. "Then we'll have one thing that Cas can actually DO at his own party."

"Ooh, yeah, let's do that," Gail said, tapping Cas playfully on the arm. "We'll need furniture for the new place. You can clean everybody out." She grinned at Dean.

"Don't count your end tables yet," Barry said to her. "Tommy and I are pretty good players, too, you know."

"We'll see about that," Cas said, smiling. "That should be fun. I may even have a drink or two." Then his smile faded. "But for right now, I think you should all come out to the library with me, and Tommy and Sam will show you what they have."

When they were all seated, Tommy told them, "So, basically, there are high-resolution images of the tomb's walls, which point to the presence of two other previously unexplored chambers."

"Why wouldn't they have known about those before?" Gail asked.

"A reasonable question," Tommy said, nodding his head to her in acknowledgement. "I'm afraid I have no answer for it, though. There are many things about King Tut's tomb which are shadowed in mystery. And the speculation continues. Even in this day and age, with all of the technological advances we have, they still had no clue that there was anything else there. And now that we do know there's more there, speculation continues that those chambers are either empty, or were unfinished at the time of his death. Or, they could hold the ultimate prize: Queen Nefertiti's remains."

"Why would that be the ultimate prize?" Dean asked.

"Because Egyptologists and other scholars have been wondering where she was interred since just about forever," Sam piped up.

"Can they not detect anything in the chambers, Tommy?" Cas asked him. "Even is there isn't a sarcophagus, shouldn't there at least be the canopic jars?"

"The what?" Gail asked him curiously.

"Those were jars, made out of different types of materials, which were designed to contain specific organs that came from the deceased," Cas told the group. "There were usually four in number. The canopic jars contained the stomach, intestines, lungs, and liver. It was believed that the deceased would have need for those organs in the afterlife. But there was no jar for the heart; as the seat of the soul, it was left in the body."

Oh, Gail thought. Then: Ewww.

Cas continued: "Actually, there are some accounts which suggest that King Tut's penis was mummified in an erect state."

They all looked at him. What did that have to do with anything? But that was the way Cas was sometimes. Facts were facts to him; whether or not they were relevant to the current topic was immaterial. But at times, it was hard for his friends to tell if he was being humorous or not.

"Well, that would save the trip to the drugstore to get the little blue pill for the afterlife," Dean joked.

"King Tut was a teenager; he shouldn't have had to worry about such things at his age," Sam chimed in.

"Yeah, but things were a lot different in those days," Tommy pointed out. "People generally only lived into their thirties, for the most part. So he was probably considered middle-aged, already."

"Well, if he'd been able to ascend, he wouldn't have had anything to worry about on that score," Castiel said absently. "Angels are capable of making love for days on end, should they so choose."

Dean spat out a mouthful of beer. "What?!" he exclaimed.

Cas's brow furrowed. "It's true, Dean. We just didn't know it before, because the ancient laws placed restrictions on us."

"So, you can..." Dean started to say. Then he looked at Gail. "So he can..."

Castiel looked sharply at his friend. "You should not be embarrassing Gail by asking her that," he said sternly.

Gail waved her hand. "It's OK, Cas. We're all friends here," she said with a little smile. "Yes, he can."

For the first time ever, when Dean looked at Cas, he did a triple-take. "I hate you," he said to Cas.

"What he means is, he'd like to BE you," Sam said, grinning.

"Well, you will be, one day," Cas said. He looked around the table at his friends. "You all will be, especially since the new laws are now in effect."

"You're welcome," Gail said to Dean pointedly, and she and Cas smiled at each other.

After a moment, Tommy continued the narrative. "Anyway, there are many other members of the royal family who might possibly be buried there, too. But the more romantic, less practical scholars want it to be Queen Nefertiti."

"Why?" Gail asked him.

Tommy replied, "Because she was a Queen. Because her name means 'a beautiful woman has come'. And because she and her husband were the most romantic and mysterious couple of their day. She and Pharaoh Akhenaten established the cult of Aten, the sun god. And Nefertiti and Akhenaten were inseparable. They often kissed in public, behaviour which was unheard of for their day. Sound familiar?" he asked Cas and Gail, smiling at his friends. The Angels exchanged smiles. Yes, it did.

"Not too much is known about Nefertiti's origins," Sam continued. "But her husband apparently went to great lengths to have her depicted as his equal in the artwork of the day."

"Way to go, Pharaoh," Gail quipped softly, flashing a thumbs-up.

Sam smiled. He figured she'd like that fact. He went on, "But Nefertiti disappeared from all depictions after about 12 years, though, and history is very unclear about what exactly happened to her. Her husband fell out of favour, too. Akhenaten tried to bring about a departure from traditional religion, but eventually he was discredited, and called a criminal."

Gail looked at Cas again, and this time she had sympathy in her eyes. That sounded familiar, too. If Sam were to tell her next that they had held a tribunal against the guy, she was going to have to ask him if he had any books on reincarnation for her to study.

"But before you get carried away with the romance of it all, Gail, it has also been suggested by some scholars that Akhenaten was, ummm, familiar with a couple of his and Nefertiti's daughters, and he may have even fathered a few of his own grandkids," Sam added dryly.

"Ewwwww, Sam! Why did you have to tell me that? Gross!" Gail exclaimed.

"Just presenting all of the facts," Sam said, shrugging. Then he grinned. "I didn't want you to think about having an Egyptian-themed wedding. Dean's feet would look terrible in sandals, and I'm way too tall to pull off one of those man-skirts."

Tommy was grinning now, too. Sam was all right. He took up the narrative. "Actually, a lot of records concerning the couple were subsequently altered, so it's pretty unclear what happened, exactly. Who's buried where, and how they were all related, may never be known. And, for everything that Sam said, which was probably unfortunately true," Tommy gave Gail a half-shrug, "there are positive things about the guy, as well. Legend had it that only Akhenaten knew the heart of his Father, and the 'F' is capitalized in the accounts," Tommy continued, seeing Castiel's startled look. "And the legend stated that Akheraten's Father listened to his prayers, though he didn't always show it."

"He definitely wasn't all bad," Sam added. "Scholars consider him the first monotheist, and one of the most romantic individuals in history, as well as one of the finest scientists of his day." Sam thought that all of that was pretty cool, himself. He wouldn't mind history remembering him in the same kinds of ways. Minus the creepy incest inferences, of course.

"As we already know, King Tut's tomb is located in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, Egypt," Tommy said. "You'll all be staying in various hotels in the city, courtesy of the Vancouver Herald." He bent down and picked up the briefcase he'd brought to the bunker along with his laptop. He opened it on the library table and looked around at everyone. "Think fast," he said, and began to toss press kits in sealed plastic bags out to each member of the quartet. "Fake ID, press credentials up the yin-yang. Should get you into anywhere. I was going to just give kits to Sam and Dean, but then, I thought better of it. You've got the powers, Cas, and Gail, you've got the doe eyes."

"The what?" she said curiously, picking up the kit he'd tossed her to examine it more closely.

"Oh, come on," Tommy replied. He looked around the room at the other men. "Show of hands: who here has seen the doe eyes?"

Sam grinned, raising his hand immediately. Then Barry and Tommy raised theirs, and Dean raised both of his, smirking. Gail glared at him, so he slowly lowered one, but he kept the other one high in the air.

Cas looked at the other men. He didn't want to seem disloyal to Gail, or to make her angry, but he knew exactly what Tommy was referring to. It was the way she had of looking at you sometimes, that made you feel like the smartest and strongest man in the universe. When her brown eyes got really wide, you knew that you could, and would, do anything for her, simply because she wanted you to do it.

Cas raised his hand in the air hesitantly, and the men all laughed.

Gail made a face. "You all make me sound like some kind of a..." She threw her hands up in frustration.

"No, no, not at all," Cas said hastily. He captured her hand mid-air and drew it to himself, holding it in both of his. "You have beautiful eyes, and we all love you very much." He looked around the table for support.

"I'd agree with Cas if I were you, buddy," Dean said to Tommy, nodding vigorously at what Cas had said. "We all love Gail, but she'd got a deadly temper, and a killer aim."

"Then I'd better duck," Tommy said, wincing as he looked at Gail again. "The reason I mentioned your eyes is because you'll have to keep the lower half of your face covered when you go out in public there."

Gail looked at him incredulously. "No way," she said, stunned.

Tommy gave her a thin smile. "Way. Sorry, Gail. I tried my best. But the only way I could get you those credentials at all was if I promised them that you would play by their rules while you're there. But believe me, I know just how you feel. I've had to pretend to be someone I'm not every time I go to one of these kinds of countries, just so I don't come home to Barry in a pine box."

They were all soberly silent for a moment, thinking about the implications of that statement. Barry reached out and took his boyfriend's hand, giving it a squeeze.

Gail could read between the lines, and she realized that she probably didn't have that much to complain about, in the grand scheme of things. Still, it rankled her. "I knew I should have bought that penis, when I went shopping on e-Bay," she quipped.

Dean and Sam laughed out loud, but Tommy's frown deepened. "We do all love you, Gail, and we all know how funny you are. But please, please don't say anything like that out loud while you're there. You never know who could be listening. And, now that I have you really pissed off, I'll pile another little nugget on: Since you and Cas are not married yet, you won't be able to hold hands, kiss, or touch each other, even incidentally, while out in public, and you'll be staying in separate quarters, of course. In fact, Gail, you won't be able to go out anywhere alone in public with any one of these guys. You'll have to go with another woman. Or, wait: how about your brother Frank? As your only male relative, he could take you anywhere you need to go. Where is he?"

Gail was frowning again. With every new word Tommy uttered, she was getting madder and madder. "Well, it looks like you're not the only one who has to pretend to be something you're not when you go there," she said sharply. Then she sighed. "Frank and Jody are coming back from their honeymoon tomorrow. I guess if they're not sick of travelling, and if we can get them some child care, they could come with us. That is, if Jody's even allowed to have a say," she finished tartly.

"If both of you go out in public with Frank accompanying you, you're good to go," Tommy said nervously, correctly gauging her expression. Gail looked like she was ready to spit nails now. "Jody can travel anywhere with Frank because she's his wife, and since you and Cas aren't married, Frank will have to be the one to accompany you as - "

" - My Master," she finished angrily. "I bet you never had to deal with THAT particular situation, did you, Tommy?"

He did feel badly for her now. It wasn't just homosexuals who had to deal with bigotry, Tommy realized. Sam scribbled something furiously on the pad of paper in front of him, and he held the pad up for Tommy to read now, nudging his foot under the table to get his attention. "QUICK, MAKE A JOKE," Sam's note read.

Tommy thought fast. "No, not since college," he quipped to Gail. "But I told Barry all about that night, and I'm not into that whole leather scene anymore."

Gail gaped at him for a moment, and then Tommy began to smile. Then Barry did, too, and then Gail's lips started to twitch furiously. "You and Frank are going to get along like crazy," she said to Tommy, shaking her head slowly. "Man, it would have to be him, of all people. Do you realize how long it'll be before I'll be able to live this down?" Frank wasn't her biological brother, of course, but she and Cas had never bothered to share that with anyone outside their immediate circle. And Gail was sure it wouldn't really matter to thise chauvinist bastards in Egypt. Just as long as her "owner" had a penis, they would be fine. Maybe she should just try to pass Cas off as her brother. Then again, maybe not. With all of that "obey" nonsense that Crowley had been spouting, she didn't want Cas getting any big ideas. Besides, if they were to slip just once and kiss or touch each other inappropriately for brother and sister, and if anyone were to see them, who knew what could happen?

Sam and Dean were laughing. They knew Frank very well by now, and they knew he was going to torment her mercilessly about this. It would be a lot of fun to see Jody's reaction to this whole thing, too. They hoped that she and Frank had had a good honeymoon. Still, Frank had better have the good sense to do a temperature reading once they got to Egypt, or they didn't like his chances. If Frank got a little too carried away with the jokes, his wife and his sister would likely form a conspiracy to kill him.

Cas and Dean looked at each other. A change of subject was clearly called for here, and the sooner the better now that Gail's anger had been temporarily defused.

"What about the reports of a curse on King Tut's tomb?" Cas asked Tommy and Sam. Both of the men smiled.

"You know how that goes, Cas," Sam said. "All you have to do is Google it, and all kinds of dire warnings come up: Anyone opening or entering the tomb will suffer the wrath of the mummy. You know, agonizing death, entrails hanging out, blah, blah. The usual."

Cas smiled faintly. "Yes, Sam, I'm familiar."

"Familiar? You were probably there when Tut was buried, working on your tan," Dean joked.

"I do look good with a tan," Cas quipped. Gail looked sidelong at him as the other men laughed. She had started to notice a bit of a pattern. Every time someone would make a comment like that, Cas would either make a quip, or change the subject. Was he deliberately being evasive for some reason? Where had he actually been all of these millennia, and what exactly had he been doing? Had he been present at some of the great moments in history, or some of the not-so-great ones?

"There was something that Tommy showed me which I found interesting, though," Sam went on. He looked at Tommy. "What was that about the bricks, again?" Tommy shuffled some of the papers he'd been using to take notes and handed that particular paper to Sam, who read aloud: "Four bricks were found when the tomb was originally opened, and they were all inscribed with a portion of Chapter 151 of the Book of the Dead."

"Well, that doesn't sound ominous at all," Barry quipped, and Sam grinned. Everyone else was looking at Sam, but Gail saw Cas frown suddenly, out of the corner of her eye. But then, as soon as he felt her gaze on him, he quickly rearranged his features to make his expression neutral. Oh, he knew something, all right. But she'd better try to pry it out of him before they got to Egypt. Apparently, they might have to do some major sneaking around to even catch a glimpse of each other while they were over there, let alone have the chance to be alone together. Well, at least the celibacy thing shouldn't be much of a challenge now, she thought wryly.

But now Tommy was giving them some more information, and she needed to quit woolgathering. "7th Century Arabs believed that tombs were cursed, protected by magical means. But that's all old-school fear and superstition. The two guys that entered King Tut's tomb first, Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon, both did have a bit of bad luck afterwards, but it was completely blown out of proportion. Carnarvon died soon after the day he entered the tomb for the first time, but he was in poor health to begin with, and it was 1923. But, for a supposedly deadly and vindictive curse, it really didn't do much after that. Most of the people who subsequently entered the tomb lived fairly normal existences, and lifespans, for the times. Carter himself lived for 16 more years after the date they'd first opened the tomb. That's one highly unmotivated curse, if you ask me."

"So the common wisdom now is that there was some kind of a protective spell inscribed on the bricks at the tomb entrance, but it was mistranslated as a death curse," Sam said, and Dean mimed wiping sweat off his brow. The humans laughed, but Gail saw Cas shake his head, almost imperceptibly.

"Some things don't change," Tommy continued. "The papers were looking for a sensational story, so it was all exaggerated, for maximum effect. So the myths persisted. But, I'll tell you what: the only things that are liable to kill you at that tomb are mould, bacteria, or poisonous gases."

"Oh, so you've obviously been around Dean after he's had too many burritos," Sam quipped.

The humans were all smiling, but Cas was looking very serious and very preoccupied now, and it was starting to drive Gail nuts.

"Will you guys excuse us for just a minute?" she said. She grabbed Cas's hand, and winked them outside.

"What's going on, Cas?" Gail demanded. "What are you not telling us?"

He tried to act innocent, but she stared at him, folding her arms in front of herself. "And don't tell me nothing," she added. "I'm already pretty mad at the prospect of being a non-person, a second-class citizen who won't even be able to hold my fiance's hand in public. So don't test me."

Cas sighed. "I don't think there's too much about this entire situation that is very amusing, unlike our human friends in there. And while I agree that the supposed curse of the mummy's tomb is mainly sensationalist nonsense, I am uncomfortable with the reference I heard to the Book of the Dead."

"What IS that, Cas?" Gail asked him warily.

"As the name would suggest, it's not exactly a bedtime storybook," he said grimly. "But I don't want to alarm anyone unnecessarily, either. I thought I would wait until we get there, and I'm able to look at the actual inscriptions on those bricks. Sam's likely right about the mistranslation, but I just want to be sure."

Gail frowned. She knew Cas well enough by now to know that that was the most she would have been able to get out of him for the time being. "OK, Cas. But please, don't keep us in the dark if there's something we need to know. Though you'll probably have to send a carrier pigeon through my window with a message tied to its leg, by the sounds of it."

He smiled gently. "We're otherworldly beings, my love. Their politics and narrow-minded attitudes mean nothing to us." He put his arms around her. "I will always find a way to see you and speak with you. And I will always find a way to be able to hold your hand. For if I could not do any of those things, I would rather be dead."

"Oh my God, Cas," Gail said, smiling. "You need to stop talking like that. It's way too sexy, especially right now."

"Then it's lucky that we're still in America, isn't it?" he said quietly. Then he kissed her on the mouth, and then they were done talking for a few minutes.

When the Angels came back, Dean had the TV remote in his hand. "To get us in the mood, I DVR'ed 'The Mummy', and 'The Mummy Returns'. If we have time, maybe we can look for 'The Scorpion King', too."

"What about 'Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy'?" Bobby said suddenly. "If the two of you are going, it'll probably be more like that, anyway."

Barry and Tommy exchanged glances. Who was this guy, now? Neither of them had seen him arrive, but suddenly, there he was. Must be another one of their Angel friends. Luckily, he had been quiet and subtle about it. They were still trying to get used to Cas and Gail doing it, as it was.

Castiel could see his Vancouver friends eyeing Bobby, and he smiled. "Barry, Tommy, this is Bobby," he said.

Tommy extended his hand to Bobby to shake. "Hi, Bobby, I'm - " Then his throat dried up as Bobby took his hand. Bobby? Tommy looked sharply at Cas, who was smiling.

"God?" Tommy said hoarsely.

Bobby gave Tommy a wry smile. "That's my job title, not my name. Call me Bobby."

They shook hands, and Tommy was speechless. This was God? What on earth had he and Barry been afraid of? His handshake was warm, and Bobby's eyes crinkled when he smiled.

"I'm Tommy," Tommy said to Bobby. "But, what am I saying? You probably already know that." He was gesturing to Barry with his free hand, and Barry walked slowly over to where they stood. He was awestruck. When he got to Tommy's side, Bobby shook Barry's hand and said, "You must be Barry. Good to meet you."

Barry was speechless. He started to quiver. "My Lord, my God," he said quietly, and Bobby said, "No, don't do that, Barry. Just call me Bobby. Please."

He let go of Barry's hand and looked at the two men. "Cas and Gail have told me about the two of you, and how good you were to them when they were in Vancouver. I'm a big believer in straight talk, so let me be completely honest with you right now. I don't give a damn what anybody does with each other in private, as long as they're both adults, and they're both consenting. That's why Gail and Cas and the board worked so hard on changing those old-time laws. Now we have true equality in Heaven, as far as sexual preference goes. And, at the risk of embarrassing them, I know that their friendship with the two of you inspired a couple of very passionate discussions with a couple of old-school Angels on the board. But we eventually arrived at a consensus, and I just want you to know that you'll be welcomed with open arms when your time comes, fellas."

Tommy's mouth dropped open. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He and Barry had actually broken up at one point over Tommy's refusal to believe, and here their Angel friends had been, working behind the scenes on their friends' behalf that whole time. He looked at Cas, who was averting his eyes now in embarrassment. "Don't look at me," Cas mumbled. "It was a team effort. If anyone should get the credit, it should be Gail. She was the Chairwoman of the Board that wrote the new laws. I can remember her practically climbing up on the boardroom table at one point to get everyone's attention, when the discussion got a little out of hand. She made a very eloquent speech about how kind the two of you were, and how loving, and that you were just the sort of men we needed as Angels in Heaven."

Gail's lips were twitching. She remembered that day, too. And when "Ogden, the Old-Timer" as she'd called him to Bobby in private, had expressed his doubts as to that fact, Gail had lost her professionalism for an instant and suggested that if Ogden didn't like it, maybe HE wasn't the kind of Angel they wanted in Heaven. She'd immediately regretted it, because she wasn't setting a very good example when it came to respecting other peoples' opinions, which was something that she had been preaching from Day One. She found it kind of funny now, though, and she and Ogden had been able to iron out their difference of opinion after that.

Everyone laughed when Cas and Gail told them the story of that scene in the boardroom, and once they were done, Tommy grabbed Gail and pulled her in for a big bear hug. Then Barry made a sound, almost like one of Gail's whimpers, and he dashed out of the room.

Gail pried Tommy off of her and handed him over to Cas. "I'll go talk to him," she told the men.

She raced down the hallway after Barry, who had run to the kitchen. He was sitting at the table, sobbing. Gail sat beside him and put her arm around him, laying his head on her shoulder. His arm went around her waist, and they sat there quietly for a moment.

Then Barry said, "I pray every day, but I don't pray to God, or Bobby, I guess we're supposed to call him. I pray to you and Cas. And every single day, I say thank you that the two of you walked into the casino that day and befriended me. Us." He took some tissues out of his inside jacket pocket and wiped his eyes. "Sorry," he said, sniffling. "I just couldn't..."

"It's OK, Barry," she said softly, touching his cheek. "Nobody here will ever give you a hard time about showing your emotions. And if they ever did, I would be able to tell you stories about each and every one of those guys that I'm holding back for blackmail purposes someday."

Barry sniffled again, and then he looked at her and smiled. "I don't know about those, but at least tell me you've seen Sam and Dean with their shirts off. And feel free to be as lovingly descriptive as possible."

Gail laughed. She glanced towards the doorway of the kitchen, then leaned in close to him. "I'll see if I can sneak a few pictures in Egypt, if they don't stone me to death for it," she told him. "But why didn't you ask me about Cas?" she teased.

Barry shrugged. "I don't know, really. Suddenly, it kind of seemed, well, sacrilegious, or something."

Gail's smile turned wicked now, and she took another quick peek to make sure they were still alone. "If I were to send you a photo of HIS best features, they'd stone me before I even sent the e-mail," she quipped.

Barry threw his head back and laughed, and he pulled her in for a hug. "I really love you, Gail," Barry told her.

"I really love you too, Barry," she responded. "So, tell me something: do you think you and Tommy are ever going to get married?"

Barry sat back in his chair, looking at her thoughtfully. "It's funny you should say that," he told her. "Tommy was always the ambitious one, the career guy, and I was the homebody. He travelled all around the world looking for that one story, the one that was going to give him the Pulitzer. Or, write his name in history. Or whatever happens with reporters. When you two came along, he was bitter, he was drinking too much, and we would argue a lot of nights because he said I was making him feel guilty for trying to do his job, and for wanting to leave his mark before he died. But then you guys entered our lives, and he began to clean up his act, at least for a while. But then, when we didn't see or hear from you guys again, he backslid, and, well, you know the rest. But when we got back together, I'd promised myself I would accept him the way he was, and not be so clingy all the time. We couldn't live without each other, Gail. You know what that's like. I know you do. To love someone so much that you don't care what you have to do to be with them, as long as you know that they love you so much that they would do the same."

Gail gave him a tight smile. She most certainly knew exactly what that was like.

"So I took the promotion at the hotel, but now, it seems like we've reversed roles, all of a sudden. I figured if I kept busy at work, I wouldn't pine away for him so much when he was away," Barry continued, as Gail nodded. It was like he was relating her life story of a while back. That was why she had become such a workaholic with the board in Heaven; though the revisions of the laws had been a priority, she had mainly made work her life for a while there so she wouldn't have to deal with the fact that she and Cas weren't together.

"But now, Tommy's turning down assignments with the paper, and he keeps talking about us being together more often after the hotel opens," Barry went on. "And when we found out that you guys were engaged, he told me that we should talk about a more serious commitment."

"How would you feel about that?" she asked him curiously.

Barry's eyes misted over again. "That's all I ever wanted, Gail," he told her.

Now she was starting to get tears in her eyes. "Me, too," she told him. "Oh, give me some of those tissues, you big poopyhead," she said, and they sat and cried loving, happy tears.

Cas had asked Bobby to come down so he could be informed about what they had discovered so far, and what Cas thought their plans should be once they and the humans got to Egypt, but Bobby surprised Cas now when he asked to speak with him privately for a moment.

"I'm coming with you, Cas," Bobby told him, "and I'm bringing Chuck, Ethan, and Kevin." Then he frowned. "We'll leave Becky behind, though. I don't think the climate is right for her and Kevin to be together right now, and if it's as politically backward as you say it is with regard to females, there's no sense in pushing things."

Cas was regarding Bobby. "Well, in that case, why increase the numbers? I think we're fine with just the six of us. And I WAS fine with just the four of us, until Tommy told us that Gail would need Frank and Jody as escorts."

"You're not in charge here, Cas," Bobby said quietly. "It's still my name on the door, and my ass in that chair."

Cas looked at Bobby coolly but said nothing. There were too many people around to start that argument. The only people who knew that Bobby was no longer actually God were Cas, Bobby, and Gail. And Crowley too, probably, although they would never confirm that to him, of course.

"I've been too hands-off for too long, Cas," Bobby told him. "I'm not gonna sit up there like some kind of a pencil-necked paper pusher any more. I know I don't have Godly powers any more, but I'm not useless, Cas."

"I never said that you were," Cas mumbled unconvincingly. But he was displeased that he would have to be responsible for more souls now. Chuck might have an inkling of an idea of the potential dangers that lay ahead, now that some of his prophecy skills seemed to be returning, and there might be some tangential benefit to that. But Cas really didn't want to have to worry about any of them any more than he absolutely had to. Sam and Dean were already looking at the acquisition of the Tablet as a great adventure, only. And he supposed that it was, from their point of view. Admittedly, Castiel was looking forward to seeing the dig site again, and the discovery of the additional chambers interested him very much. But he mainly had to make sure they got in, got the Tablet, and got out in one piece; that was the main thing. The only thing, really.

By now, Gail had come back into the library area walking hand in hand with Barry. He released her hand after giving it a quick kiss and then went to Tommy. Tommy hugged Barry, and his boyfriend laid his head on his shoulder.

"Come on, let's watch these movies, already," Dean said excitedly. Gail smiled at him. He was just like a little kid at Christmastime. She was a bit excited about it, herself. Not too many people got to see these kinds of places from the perspective they were apparently going to see them from. She supposed that she should be glad that she would even be allowed to go to the dig site at all, considering the kinds of things that she'd been hearing about the place. It was too bad that she might have to watch some of the action from the back of the theatre, though, and with half of her face covered, to boot.

But that thought reminded her of another, and she looked at Tommy now. "How are we going to get Frank and Jody in those places with us? I think both of them probably have the proper ID, especially with Jody being a Sheriff and all, but will they have the same kind of access as we have, without the special credentials?"

"Jody's a Sheriff?" Tommy said, surprised. He mused about that for a moment. "I wonder if that could work for us, or against us." He looked over at Cas, who was walking over to where they stood. "Hey, Cas," Tommy said, "if you don't mind zapping me back to my office, I'll see if I can have kits made up for Gail's brother and sister-in-law, too, just to be on the safe side."

Gail put her hand on his arm. "Thanks for all your help on this, Tommy. I didn't mean to be so short with you earlier. I just..."

"I know," Tommy sighed. "I know how you feel, Gail."

"I'll stay here until you get back," Barry told Tommy. He looked at Dean and Sam. "Maybe I'll make us some movie snacks, if you guys don't mind me rooting around in your kitchen cupboards."

"Are you kidding?" Dean enthused. "That'd be great!"

"Here, I'd better come with you," Gail told Barry. She looked at Cas. "Too bad my blade doesn't conjure up food," she said wryly. She kissed him on the cheek on her way by. "See you in a bit, sweetie."

Cas smiled. He would never, ever tire of hearing her call him that. "I love you, and you will never be a second-class citizen to me, nor to any man here," he told her softly.

"And there's your exit line," Gail said, returning his smile. She followed Barry back down the hallway as Cas took Tommy's hand, winking them to Vancouver.

They had gotten about halfway through the first movie when she heard a noise coming from down the hallway. Gail glanced in that direction, wondering what it was that she had heard. Bobby had gone back up to Heaven, advising that he would be bringing the Angels by in the morning, and Cas and Tommy were still gone from the bunker. Gail knew that the place had all the protections they could possibly have on it now, but she still felt a momentary flutter. Lucifer had gotten in here once, hadn't he? And she was the only Angel here at the moment.

She got up and quietly entered the hallway, taking her blade out of her pants pocket. Both Crowley and Cas had made her promise to keep it on her person at all times now, and since she was finding out that she could do so many other things with it, the idea appealed to her. She pressed the button and the blade sprung out of the hilt. Now she could see a dark shape at the other end of the corridor. Why wasn't whoever it was announcing themselves?

Well, there was something else she'd found out she could do with her blade. She didn't want to panic anyone by yelling, so she spoke the Enochian word softly, and a beam of light emanated from the hilt of her blade. Unfortunately, all she could make out from the dim light was that the figure was tall, and apparently male.

"You have about two seconds to identify yourself, or you'll be cut to ribbons by this blade," she said, as menacingly as she could. "And then I'll call Castiel down here, and he'll really go to work on you."

"Good Lord, Gail. How many B-movies with bad dialogue have you guys watched since I've been away?" Frank quipped. He flipped on the kitchen light at the end of the corridor. "I guess I should have called, first. That light thing you're doing is pretty cool, though. Is that new?"

She said the word backwards, and the light went out. Then she ran down the corridor and threw herself into his arms. Thank God it was him and thank God he was all right. Then she punched him in the chest. "You scared me!" she told him. "Why didn't you just say it was you?"

"I was gonna, when I got further down the hall. But everything was dark, so I didn't think anyone was here."

"What are you doing back here?" Gail asked him. "I thought you guys weren't due back until tomorrow."

"Yeah, well, Disneyland was fun, but you can only eat so much junk food, ride so much, and throw up so much. And Robbie had had his fill, too," he quipped. "And Jody and I wanted to find out what was going on."

"Funny you should say that, cause suddenly there's a whole lot of stuff going on," Gail said vaguely.

"I can see that," Frank said evenly. "Like, for instance, what's that thing on your finger that you're specifically not mentioning?"

Gail smiled slyly, looking at her right hand. "What, do I have some dirt, or something?"

Frank rolled his eyes and grabbed her other hand, gesturing to the ring.

"Ohhh, THAT," Gail said casually. Then she broke out in a grin. "He proposed, Frank. Can you believe it? Cas wants me to marry him."

"Of course I can believe it," Frank said. "Guy's no fool." He grabbed Gail and hugged her to him. "I'm so happy for you two," Frank said. His voice was thick, and Gail could feel him shaking. Was he crying?

She hugged him tightly and closed her eyes. Now she was going to cry, too. Her brother was a smartass who mostly drove her crazy, but when he cried, he took you down with him.

He sniffled and then broke the embrace. "Sit down with me for a second." Frank took her by the hand and led her to the kitchen table. Once they were seated, he took both of her hands in his.

"Being married is the best thing ever," Frank told her. "You're gonna love it, Gail. I think the world of Dean and Sam, but they're going about it all wrong. To be able to go to bed with, and then wake up with, the same person every day, knowing they're going to be there with you the next day, and the day after that? Knowing that they love you so much that they chose to get up in front of God and the Angels and everyone and say so, and really mean it? There's nothing like it, Gail. Nothing. I owe Cas everything for bringing me back to all of you. I never would have met Jody had he not done that. I love her so damn much, Gail. And she loves me. Can you imagine? She actually loves me."

"No, I can't imagine that," Gail said quietly, smiling so he would know she was kidding. "But hey, where was all that mushy talk at your wedding?"

"That's not our way," Frank replied. "It's yours and Cas's." He started to grin. "I can't wait to see him before your wedding. Remember how worked up he was at mine?"

"Yes, and just so you know, we're going to say our own vows," Gail said, continuing to smile warmly at her brother. "So the mush alert is on."

"Hey, bring it," Frank said cheerfully. "I can't wait."

"Well, right now we've got this other thing that has to take priority," Gail told him. "In fact, I'm glad you and Jody are back now. We should probably get her to come over, so we can all discuss what we're going to do. I kind of committed you both to something. Do you think she can drive over here? I know it's getting late; she can put Robbie to bed in our room, if you guys want. But I think we all really need to talk about this." She told him in vague, general terms about the mission in Egypt, and the fact that she pretty much needed him and Jody to be there.

"Cas and Tommy will be back in a little while. But if you and Jody feel like you can't go because of Robbie, or whatever, just let me know, and we'll figure something else out," Gail said to her brother.

"I'll ask her to come here, and we'll talk about it," Frank said, taking his cell phone out of his pocket. Once he'd spoken to Jody, Frank said, "Let's go have some snacks and watch some TV while we wait for them to get here."

They walked back down the hall and into the living room area.

"Frank!" Dean exclaimed. "What are you doing here? Jody throw you out already?"

Frank smiled. "No, she hasn't come to her senses yet. Hey, Sam." He looked down at Barry. "You must be Cas and Gail's friend, from the casino." Gail had mentioned that he and Tommy were here when she had told him what was going on. Frank searched his brain, but he couldn't come up with Barry's name, even though Gail had just mentioned it a couple of minutes prior. "Wait, I'll get this," he said. "One of the gay guys. Tommy, and...Barry! That's it, right?"

Barry stood from the couch, bemused. So this was Gail's brother. Whoever had given him the name Frank had aptly named him, apparently.

"I don't know if I've ever been called exactly that before. 'One of the gay guys'. But, I've certainly been called a lot worse things, so I'll take it," Barry told Frank.

Frank stuck his hand out for Barry to shake. "I hope that didn't bug you," Frank said to him. "That's the way I talk. I don't have much of a filter. But I don't have any problems with you guys, and I hope you don't think I'm one of THOSE guys. I just have a problem with political correctness. I prefer to just call it as I see it. So it doesn't matter to me about any label you have on you; it's the type of person you are that matters to me. That's all."

Barry took Frank's hand, and they shook. "I agree, Frank. I'm not into labels, myself. It's what you do and how you act towards others that's important. I'm pleased to meet you," he told Frank. Then Barry smiled. "The other gay guy should be back in a few minutes, so you can meet him then."

"OK, well, let's sit and watch 'The Mummy' for a while," Frank said. He had noticed what they'd been watching when Dean had paused it, and it was one of Frank's favourites. "When Jody gets here, we'll get her into it, too. We'll just tell her that we're doing research for our trip." He clapped Barry on the shoulder and the two men settled back into the couch cushions, with Gail snuggled in-between them. She was happy that they all seemed to be coming together to embark on this quest as a family. To her, that was a good omen. And Barry and Tommy were just as much a part of their family now as any of the others, as far as she was concerned. She couldn't wait until Cas and Tommy got back, and Jody and Robbie arrived. So many people she loved, all in the same place, working towards a common goal. She really was the luckiest woman in the world.

And Tommy and Cas meant to see that she stayed that way. They had been sitting in the newspaper office talking, waiting for Frank and Jody's ID packages to be made up, when Tommy got the alert on his computer. "Excuse me for a minute, Cas," Tommy said, walking over to the machine. He clicked on the wire item which had signaled the alert and scrolled down, reviewing the story.

Tommy gave a low whistle. "Holy crap. Come here, Cas."

"What is it, Tommy?" Cas said, rising and coming over to where Tommy sat. He looked over his friend's shoulder at the screen.

A story was coming in about an American woman who had been brutally murdered, in the region that they were planning to enter. As Tommy continued to scroll down, the men read the horrifying details. This single woman had had the temerity to approach the man she loved, who happened to be a single Egyptian man, and kiss him in public. She'd removed her face covering to do it, and he had kissed her back, but she had been taken off to jail, while there had been no consequences for the man. But, because she was an American, the government promised to leave her alone, if she promised not to do it again. And she had promised. But then a day or so later, she had been walking around the marketplace and the man's brother had suddenly attacked her. He'd stabbed her again and again, calling her an "American whore" who had corrupted his brother and shamed his family. There had been no punishment for the woman's killer, and the poor woman, whose only crime had been expressing her love, lay dead in an unmarked grave in a foreign land, branded a whore.

How could something like this happen in this day and age? Cas thought, mystified. He asked Tommy this now.

"You're asking the wrong person, Cas," Tommy said, shaking his head. "As a gay man, I'm subject to the same kind of prejudice, and not always in foreign lands, either."

Now Cas was really worried about bringing Gail there. He wished he could just advise her to stay behind, but he knew that she would never agree to that. And if they truly were to be equal partners, he had to do his part by actually treating her like an equal. But he had always had trouble doing that when it came to her being exposed to danger.

Still, he looked at Tommy and said, "Is there anything we can do to help keep her safe?"

Tommy leaned back in his chair. "I've been thinking about that, Cas. We're going to have to segregate her from the rest of you, make sure she can't go anywhere without her brother, or Jody. If she's nowhere near you, or any of the guys, then she won't be able to slip up, right?"

Cas cocked an eyebrow at him. "You haven't spent as much time with my darling Gail as the rest of us have. Ask Barry how stubborn she can be sometimes."

"Well then, we're just going to have to print up this article and hit her in the face with it," Tommy said, shrugging. "And, I've put in an additional safeguard. You're no longer going to be a reporter, Cas. Sam, Dean, Gail and Frank will be the journalists. You're going to be a Sheikh, a member of the royal family who may or may not have a claim to the new discoveries at the dig site. You'll be in a palace on the other side of town, and you'll have servants and security staff. We're going to keep her away from you, Cas, whether she likes it or not."

Cas breathed a sigh of relief. He put a hand on Tommy's shoulder. "Thank you, Tommy. Whatever we need to do to keep her safe." Now that he had insisted that Gail keep her Angel blade with her at all times, he couldn't take the chance of her being attacked by a fanatic who may discover the knife on her and use it against her.

"That should work," Tommy said, "and then, when you're all at the dig site, you can figure things out from there. Use whatever Angel stuff you guys use. But Cas, just know that there are a lot of pissed-off guys there, with a lot of guns, and a lot of them hate Americans. So even though you and Gail can't be killed by conventional human weapons, remember that your human friends don't enjoy the same luxury. And the instant that you give the game away as to what you're truly thereafter, you're never getting within 200 miles of that dig site again, no matter how many palms we grease. So, if you need a human to put their hands on that Tablet, which you're telling me that you do, you're going to have to run a very covert operation here."

Cas nodded. He understood, and he thought there shouldn't be too much of a problem with that, as long as Bobby allowed him to take the lead. He had been very good at subterfuge during the Angel wars.

Tommy was frowning now. "And, there's one more thing I haven't told you about yet, though you may or may not be aware of this already. As a Sheikh, and as part of your cover, you'll have a harem, Cas."

Cas winced. "I was hoping you weren't going to tell me that." But he knew that this was the way it worked, even in this modern day and age. But how on earth was he ever going to tell Gail about this? He would never have anything to do with any of those women, of course, but Gail was already angry enough about this whole situation as it was, and she hadn't even heard about this part yet. He raised an eyebrow to Tommy. "Are you sure I can't be the first gay Sheikh in the royal family?" he joked. "Do you know how much trouble I'm going to be in about this?"

Tommy shrugged. "Hey, it's better for Gail to be angry for a short while than gravely injured for a long while. What about if somebody were to overpower her, and use her own Angel blade on her? That could kill her, right? That's what Barry said."

Cas nodded. He was impressed; his friends were astute, and they obviously paid attention, and cared about Gail's well-being. "That's exactly right, Tommy," he agreed quietly.

"Well then, let her be mad," Tommy said, almost cheerfully. "I guess you won't need to worry about her being accidentally affectionate towards you if she's not even speaking to you." He got up from his chair. "I'll go see if the extra credentials are ready. I took the liberty of setting things up that way. You'd better stop shaving immediately. From what Barry tells me, and we had a couple of words about how he knows this," Tommy said, smiling to show Cas that he was joking, "you'll have enough stubble by tomorrow to have the beginnings of a nice beard. We'll send you there by private plane, and have a limo meet you at the other end, and it'll take you to the palace. Then you'll change into the traditional robes, and head over to the dig site. The Angels can discreetly pop everyone else to Egypt tomorrow once everyone's ready, but we're going to send you the conventional way, so you can make a big splash in the news when you get there. We've bribed a few officials here and there, but if we can get your identity legitimized in the press, you'll have more autonomy at the dig site. They take their royal family rights very seriously there. And, Cas? One more thing. I know it won't come easily to you, but if you could act a little...aloof, it wouldn't hurt, to sell them on the fact that you are who you say you are. Be arrogant. You'll have servants; try ordering them around. They'll be expecting that kind of behaviour from a member of the royal family; if you're too nice, they'll be suspicious."

Cas was frowning now. He was going to hate this. Not only was Gail going to be upset with him, now Tommy was telling him that he'd have to be an obnoxious jerk to everyone else. Great. How could he figure out the proper way to act? Then he thought about the wealthy wizarding family in his and Gail's book series, and the way the father acted towards everyone. He wouldn't quite go that overboard, maybe, but at least he had some kind of a frame of reference for his character now. Except for the time that he'd had the disease, Castiel had never been the type of person that Tommy was telling him that he needed to be for this mission. It just wasn't in his nature.

He sighed. "Please go check on the credentials, Tommy. The sooner I get back to the bunker and face the music, as they say, the better, I guess." Cas tried to smile.

Tommy raised an eyebrow to him. "What do you want me to do, Cas?"

Cas looked at him for a moment, and then he got it. He cleared his throat. "Fetch the credentials, and be quick about it," he said to Tommy, in a sharp voice.

"Much better," Tommy said. Then he smiled. "Is it wrong that I got a little turned on by that?"

Cas smiled back. Tommy was using levity to try to make him feel better, and he appreciated that.

Tommy came back with a press kit for Frank, ID for Jody as his wife, and some documentation for Cas.

"You can keep this stuff on you, but don't produce it unless you're in a real jam," Tommy told Cas. "Remember, you are who you are. How dare anyone ask you to prove it? Besides, it's a little thin, so I'm not sure it'll hold up to close scrutiny. But if you play your part well, I don't think it'll be a problem."

Now Cas was reminded of the witch who had walked into the bank in the last of the book series, demanding that they take her to her vault. He supposed that was the way he should act, if he were asked. Funny how such fantasy subject matter could serve as a guidebook of sorts for real life. He would definitely have to share that thought with Gail when he and Tommy returned to the bunker. If she was still speaking to him once he delivered the latest change of plan, of course.

Cas was studying the bio that was clipped to his forged Egyptian documentation.

"I have fourteen wives?" he asked Tommy incredulously. "Fourteen?!"

Tommy's lips twitched. "Well, thirteen would have just been unlucky."

Cas used an earthly phrase that would have made Dean proud but took Tommy aback. "You realize that when Gail hears about this, and she gets angry, I'm sending her directly to you to provide the explanation," Cas told him.

Tommy was just opening his mouth to retort when they felt it. The entire building shook, and then telephones and computers started falling off of the desks. Then, the building felt as if it were swaying from side to side for a moment.

"Earthquake!" Tommy yelled. "Come on, Cas, we have to evacuate everyone immediately!" They stuffed the ID packets in their pockets and ran around the floor, gathering people up and sending them down the emergency stairs. The shaking seemed to have stopped now, but Tommy advised that there were sometimes aftershocks. Cas wished he could just wink everyone out of there, but he couldn't risk that kind of exposure. However, when the opportunities arose, he popped from floor to floor, checking for others. Thankfully, because it was so late on a Sunday night, the building had been mainly empty.

He came back to Tommy's floor to give him the all clear, and then he grabbed Tommy's hand, popping them down to the 2nd Floor stairwell. When the men emerged in the lobby, it appeared as though they had merely walked down the entire way.

The two men walked outside, into the night air. A few people were milling around, but most had left the site already, presumably to go home and check on their loved ones. They couldn't see any damage to the buildings around them, but sirens were sounding in the background, and Cas was sure that he could smell fire.

Cas was deeply suspicious now. Yes, he'd heard that earthquakes happened in Vancouver from time to time. People on the set of the TV show used to joke about "The Big One", on more than just a few occasions. But Cas didn't buy it. What was Lucifer trying to pull now?


	2. Manic Monday

Chapter 2 - Manic Monday

Lucifer had merely been rattling the toy box, trying to have a little fun by shaking a few things loose. He knew that the Angels and their little band of do-gooders were up to something, but he didn't know exactly what that could be. Mark had reported that Luke had hinted around that Castiel and Gail had been sniffing around the veil, and even though Luke claimed he had no idea if they'd been successful in reaching anyone in the Netherworld, if they were trying to speak with Luke, he'd told Mark that he might just consider talking to them.

Luke had no intention of talking to their Father's favourite Son and his little girlfriend, of course; he was just yanking Lucifer's chain. And truth be told, Lucifer wasn't really worried about Luke spilling his dried-up old guts to the two Angels. But then, why were they trying to pierce the veil? What exactly did they know?

So Lucifer had asked Rowena to get out her bag of tricks, and he had told her that the next time any of them ventured out of the bunker, he wanted to know who they were with, and what they were doing. She had seen them with her son, and then the Angels had gone back into the bunker, and now Castiel was with the human called Tommy, at the high-rise building that held the newspaper office where Tommy worked.

Rowena reported this latest development to Lucifer, and his brow furrowed. Castiel was doing research, obviously. But on what, specifically? Rowena hadn't been able to hear any of their conversation. Lucifer seethed. What use was that to him? But he had been reluctant to express his frustration to Rowena, because he thought she could be of great use to him in the future. She was the only one who could see Castiel now, and Crowley, and Gail. They were all shielded to him. But she had to go on believing that being in Lucifer's service was her idea, and her choice. These women and their headstrong ways, Lucifer thought indulgently. For untold centuries, males had been the ones in charge, and certain females were looking to change that status quo, from what he could see. But as far as Lucifer was concerned, Rowena and Gail were dreaming. It would be the Alpha Originals who would end up deciding things, as it always had been. Lucifer, Castiel, and Crowley. The Bad, the Good, and the...Which? Lucifer was convinced that Crowley didn't know himself at times which one he wanted to be. The King of Hell seemed to think he could play for both teams simultaneously. None of the three of them liked the others, but Lucifer had always believed that if push came to shove, the King of Hell would have no choice but to pick Lucifer's side. But Crowley was an odd duck, and it seemed to Lucifer that he had some kind of a peculiar notion that Castiel and Gail would accept him as family going forward if he were to help them now. Wait till he found out the cold, hard truth. It wouldn't be the first time they had stabbed Crowley in the back, and it wouldn't be the last. It was inconvenient for Lucifer to have Crowley allied with the Angels, so he had tried to create a rift between them when he'd had Paul kidnap Castiel. Surely the Angels would blame Crowley for his servant's behaviour. But as it had turned out, Crowley had ridden in there on his black horse to help Team Purity get their Angels back, and even though Lucifer had snapped Linda Tran's neck in a fit of pique, no lasting harm had befallen any of the others. Lucifer had thought for sure that Crowley would have just allowed the Angels to be killed there, or even that he would join in and assist Lucifer in their murders, once he'd had them incapacitated. But Crowley was clinging on to his faint hope at the moment, and if Lucifer was going to create trouble there, he would have to try harder.

But for now, he just wanted to send a bit of a message. So he clapped his hands together once, and the sound was very loud. Then he slid the palms of his hands against each other, concentrating, shifting the tectonic plates. Vancouver would feel it, all right. Then he sent out the eye and found the apartment building where the Sons of Sodom lived. Not that Lucifer was judging, of course. The humans could be as gay as they wanted to be. Far be it from him. But they were aligning themselves with Castiel against Lucifer, and they needed to be shown that there would be consequences that came from that kind of decision.

Lucifer found Barry and Tommy's apartment building, shifted his palms against each other again, hard, and the building collapsed.

"Oh, my God," Tommy said. He and Cas felt the second shock, and they saw a high-rise building collapse a few blocks down from where they were standing. "I think that's our building, Cas," he said, panicked. He clutched at Cas, and Cas winked them over there.

The building lay in smoldering ruins, and Tommy stared at the rubble, open-mouthed. Cas was looking around. Every other building in sight remained standing. Oh, this was Lucifer all right, sending a very personal message. His heart hurt for his friends.

Tommy heaved a deep sigh. All their possessions. Everything they owned, gone. Just like that. Well, he'd been intending to talk to Barry about simplifying their lives and downsizing their possessions, anyway.

Cas sent a message to Gail. He was aware that they had been watching movies at the bunker, but just in case the news were to reach them somehow, he didn't want her to worry. He let her know that he and Tommy were fine, and that they would be there in a minute.

"Turn off the movie," Gail said suddenly, sitting up straight.

Barry had been dozing against her shoulder, and he slumped to the side, to where Frank had been dozing at her other side.

"Hey!" Frank exclaimed. "What the hell, Gail?"

"Turn on the news, Dean," Gail said tersely, ignoring her brother. "Cas just sent me a message. He said he and Tommy are fine, but there's been an earthquake in Vancouver."

"Oh, my God," Barry said, fully awake now.

Dean grabbed the remote and stopped the movie, and now he was looking for an international news station. "Was it only in Vancouver?" he asked her.

"I don't know, Dean," Gail said irritably. "That's why we're looking for a news station."

"Look for CNN," Sam told his brother. "If it was a big enough quake, it should be on there."

Jody was just entering the living room, with Robbie in tow. "I was just going to tell you guys," she said. "I heard the report on the car radio on the way over." She looked around the room. "Where's Cas, Gail?"

"He's still there, but he's fine," Gail said.

Then Dean found CNN, and the report came on. And then, the thought suddenly hit him: "Nicole!" Dean exclaimed.

Cas and Tommy popped into the library area then, and Gail and Barry jumped up from the couch and ran over to their respective partners.

Gail touched Cas's face. "We're fine, Gail," he told her, smiling at her concern. Then Cas glanced at Dean. "And you don't need to worry about Nicole. The entire production team flew out of Vancouver just after Frank and Jody's wedding. They're overseas right now."

Dean let out the breath he'd been holding as Gail hugged Cas tightly. Tommy was holding Barry just as tightly. "Cas took me over to our building, hon," Tommy said softly to Barry. "It's been destroyed."

"The whole building?" Barry asked him quietly, and Tommy nodded. "My God, those poor people," Barry said in a trembling voice. "I wonder how many of them died just because they happened to be home on a Sunday night."

Tommy was stricken. And the first thing he had thought about was their stupid possessions. Now he felt ashamed of himself.

"Cas, we've got to go there," Gail said. "Maybe we can help."

Cas thought about that. He would love to do something to help all of those poor people, but it never seemed to work out when he tried. Look at Haiti. Still, what kind of Angels would they be if they didn't at least try?

He grabbed her hand. "We'll see if there's anything we can do," he told Barry and Tommy.

"If you happen to see an old green-coloured photo album lying around, see if it's got pictures in it of me and Tommy," Barry said, trying to smile through his tears. "The other things were only possessions. That's about the only thing we had that means anything to me."

Cas and Gail vanished, and Tommy looked at Barry again. "I want you to quit the hotel, Barry. Please. I was going to ask you to do it anyway, and it's like this was a sign, or something. I want to spend more time with you, and we can live much simpler lives on what we've managed to save over the years. Just think, Barry. If one or the other of us had been home, or both of us, we'd be dead now. Life's too short. I don't want to be apart from you anymore."

The others in the room were watching the two men without comment. None of them found what Tommy was saying the least bit discomfiting. It may be two men saying the kinds of things they were all used to hearing Cas and Gail say, but the love was true in both instances, and Barry and Tommy were obviously two good guys.

Barry looked at the Winchesters. "Do you guys get regular cell phone service in here? I have an employer to call."

Cas and Gail were rooting around in the rubble of the building. There were rescue workers there as well, looking for survivors, but it was becoming increasingly apparent that there would be none.

The Angels' hearts were heavy. They knew that this was Lucifer's doing. Thank God that their friends had been with them at the time, but they had the feeling that Barry and Tommy had lost their home, and all these people had lost their lives, just because Lucifer had been trying to make a point.

"He knows that you have pierced the veil, or at least, that you have attempted to," Death said from behind them. "He feels a threat that he cannot quantify. Therefore, he lashes out, like a petulant child."

Castiel and Gail looked at him. This was becoming an all-too-common type of meeting.

"You're wasting your time here," Death said dourly. "There are no lives to save." He gave Gail a small bow. "However, if you were to look down, just to your left, you will see a certain green book that you may just be able to reach. Good luck in Egypt."

Then he disappeared into the rubble, and Gail looked down and to her left. Sure enough, there was a green binder down there, in a hole about three feet deep in the ground.

"I think I see it, Cas," Gail said excitedly. "And I think I can reach it." She laid on the ground on her stomach and reached into the hole. "I've almost got it," she told him. Her fingertips were brushing it now. "Stupid T-Rex arms!" she exclaimed in frustration. "Cas, can you come here and hold my legs, so I can go in just a little bit further?"

He shook his head, smiling slightly. She was so sweet to be making such an effort for their friends. But he knew how much their photos had meant to her, and he could see how determined she was to salvage Barry and Tommy's precious pictures.

Cas knelt down behind her and grasped her firmly by the legs. "I've got you," he said.

"Okay, just let me down a little - bit - more..." Gail grabbed the photo album with both hands, but the extra movement shifted the smoking rubble, and she felt the skin on her forearms burning. Ouch! She hissed in pain but kept a death grip on the photo album.

"Pull me up, Cas!" she yelled. He did so immediately, and she handed him the album. Then she looked at her arms. They had angry red burn marks on them, and blisters were already starting to form there. "Owww," Gail moaned. Tears sprang to her eyes.

Cas put the photo album down on the ground and gently took her by the hands. He ran his hand over her arms hopefully, but of course, he was unable to heal severe burns.

"Can you hold on for just a moment?" Cas said, his brow furrowed with concern.

The tears were flowing from her eyes now, but Gail was trying to suck it up and be brave. She nodded, unable to speak due to the pain. She knew he would take care of her.

Cas took his cell phone out of his pocket and called Dean. "Dean, I need you to call Crowley and invite him into the bunker," he told his friend. "Gail's been injured, and he's the only one of us who can heal this type of injury. Besides, I want him to check on the protections at the bunker again and reinforce them, if necessary."

Dean frowned, but he could tell it was Castiel the Angel talking now, and he knew that his friend wouldn't ask him to invite the King of Hell to come inside the bunker if it wasn't absolutely necessary. "OK, Cas," Dean said, and he called Crowley immediately once they'd hung up.

Cas arrived with Gail, and Crowley snapped himself in at almost exactly the same moment. Tommy and Barry jumped. They weren't used to all these sudden appearances.

Cas tossed the photo album to Tommy, who caught it neatly. "I hope there are some nice pictures in there," Cas said tersely. He eased Gail into one of the library chairs and looked at Crowley. "Can you please help with this?"

"Of course I can," Crowley said, and he hurried over to where Gail sat. He knelt down in front of her and took her arm by the wrist.

Barry rushed over to where they were. "I'm so sorry, Gail," he wailed, overcome with emotion. "I never meant that you should hurt yourself on our account!"

Crowley glared up at him. "You're in my light," he said curtly, and his eyes glowed red, sending Barry staggering backwards. Tommy put the photo album down on the table and caught Barry, arresting his backwards momentum. They both gaped at Crowley. What kind of an Angel was this guy?

Cas could see the men's' puzzlement out of the corner of his eye but making sure that Gail was no longer in pain was his priority right now. He stood still as Crowley ran his hand over one of Gail's arms, then the other. The red glow came out of his hand and suffused her arms, making the wounds momentarily more painful, and she whimpered, biting her lip. But then the blistering started to heal, and eventually, her skin was pristine again.

"Thank you," she breathed with relief.

"A picture album," Crowley said sardonically, shaking his head. He started to rise.

Barry approached again, needing to be sure that Gail was okay, but when Crowley wheeled on him, Barry stopped in his tracks. "Sorry about a moment ago," Crowley said casually. "But I don't enjoy being approached suddenly."

"Who are you?" Barry asked him.

Crowley gave him a thin smile. "Crowley. King of Hell." He glanced at Cas. "Longtime enemy, erstwhile ally. I'm in ally mode at the moment."

"King of Hell?" Tommy said sharply. "What's he talking about, Cas?"

Cas frowned. "It's complicated."

Gail was still touching her arms, relieved beyond measure that the pain was gone. "Very complicated," she confirmed, nodding. She indicated Barry and Tommy, looking at Crowley. "And these guys are - "

"I know who they are," he interrupted. "The poofters."

Tommy and Barry exchanged glances. Had they just been insulted, or not?

"These are two souls I won't be getting, thanks to you and your new laws," Crowley groused good-naturedly. He sighed. "But that's all right; these two are too goody-good to be decent Demon material, anyway."

"Exactly," Gail said firmly. "That's all I was trying to say at the time. Gay doesn't automatically mean hellbound, any more than being straight means you're automatically a good person. Don't worry, you'll still get all the perverts and the criminals," she added dryly.

Barry and Tommy were astounded to see how Crowley, Gail and Cas were interacting. She was smiling at Crowley now, and both Cas and Crowley helped her up from her chair. "Let's go check the perimeter," Cas said. "I want to make sure the protections are as strong as possible before we leave for Egypt in the morning."

"Egypt? So that's where the first one is, eh?" Crowley mused aloud. "You know, there are still some places in Luxor where you can drop my name and drink for free all night." Dean perked up at that. Then Crowley continued, "Then again, there are other places where the mere mention of my name will get you eviscerated and decapitated. I just wish I could remember which was which."

Gail was smiling, shaking her head. "Let's go," she told Cas and Crowley. She took their hands, and they popped outside.

"Now that we're alone, I need to know: How likely is it that you're going to be able to pull this off?" Crowley asked Castiel.

"Of course we'll pull it off," Cas told his Brother. "We all have parts to play, and once we are able to get into the newly discovered chambers, Sam or Dean will be able to carry the Tablet out for us."

"Parts to play?" Crowley asked curiously. "Such as?"

"Gail, Sam and Dean will be American reporters," Cas said. "Tommy's gotten them credentials."

Crowley nodded, looking slyly at Gail. "You'll have every inch of you covered, of course, including the bottom half of your face," he said to her. She frowned but nodded. "But how are you travelling around, sweetheart?" Crowley asked her, genuinely curious now. "You can't do it the Angel way, and you can't go with a Winchester, or even with your fiance here, without having to worry about being stoned to death. I'm not sure if they actually do that anymore, but I wouldn't like to find out, if I were you."

"Frank and Jody are coming, too," Gail responded. "Well, at least I'm assuming that they are. And since Frank's my brother, he has to accompany me everywhere, apparently. In this day and age. Can you imagine?" she said to Crowley.

"Yes, I can," Crowley told her. She glared at him, and he held his hands up in supplication. "Hey, I'm not saying that I approve, necessarily. I'm just saying that some cultures don't progress because they don't want to progress. It's a Catch-22, isn't it, sweetheart? If men are in charge and everything is skewed to their favour, why should they want to change that? But in order to change things without having total anarchy, there would have to be a woman bold enough, and with enough influence on society, to bring about gradual change."

But this talk was giving him an idea now, and Crowley turned to Castiel. "You haven't said what your role will be," he said slyly.

"Me?" Cas said, stalling. He had been hoping to think of a way to cushion the blow for Gail first, but he couldn't think of anything that would do that, really. He looked at her. "Now, with the addition of Frank, Tommy has given me a different role to play. I'll be a member of the royal family, who may have a claim to ownership of the contents of the newly discovered chambers."

"And how many wives will you have, Sheikh?" Crowley asked him, thoroughly enjoying himself now.

Castiel sighed, wincing. "Fourteen," he said quietly.

Predictably enough, Gail erupted. "What?!" she exclaimed.

"Not bad," Crowley smirked. "Fourteen sweet, submissive women, at your beck and call."

Gail took her blade out of her pocket, looking at it. "I'm not above making the both of you into Swiss cheese right now, just so you know," she snapped.

"Gail, you know I won't be having anything to do with any of those women," Castiel assured her, approaching her slowly.

"He won't have to," Crowley spoke up. "They'll be there to serve HIM. Attend to his every need, from what I understand."

"Okay, you need to shut up now," Gail said, pointing her blade at him. Then she waved it in the direction of the bunker. "So, are we going to shore up these protections, or not?"

The two men took their blades out, and the trio reinforced the seals around the outside door of the bunker. Then they moved to the garage door and did the same.

Gail had been tight-lipped the whole time, attending to the business at hand. But once they were done, she couldn't stand it anymore. She wheeled on Castiel. "That doesn't mean I have to like it." Then she turned to Crowley. "I will wipe that smirk right off your face." Then she popped herself back into the bunker, leaving the two men standing there.

Crowley looked at Castiel. "Are you sure you don't want her to take the ancient vows?" he quipped.

Cas frowned. "I don't blame her for being upset. I would be too, if I were in her shoes."

"As would I," Crowley acknowledged, somewhat surprisingly. He dipped his head. "You know, it's a pity you have to do this with such finesse. I might just be tempted to blast myself in there and take my chances. That's your usual Modus Operandi, is it not?"

"Yes, but the Tablet is warded to us," Castiel said, letting out a frustrated breath. Therefore, we have to involve humans. And in order to do that, we must assimilate."

Crowley smirked again. "Well, here's some free advice. Don't assimilate too much, if you still want to make her your bride. That is, assuming she will still marry you after this Egyptian caper is over."

Now Castiel looked like he was thinking about that, and Crowley had had all the fun he could stand for one day. He wanted to affix that look of panic on Castiel's face in his memory for a while. But he had a message to convey, first.

"I know that lot doesn't approve of our working together so closely on this," Crowley said, gesturing vaguely towards the bunker door. "But this is Lucifer we're talking about, not just some garden-variety Demon. Not even Bobby could defeat him, even if Bobby were still God, which we both know that he's not. But it's all right, Castiel. I'm not asking you to deny Bobby. We all know how well that worked out for Judas. All I'm saying is, don't let your humans, or your own sentiments, get in the way of your doing what needs to be done. However it needs to be done. Even if you have to lie, cheat, and steal to do it."

Castiel was frowning, but Crowley wasn't actually telling him anything he didn't already know. It wasn't as if he hadn't used some very questionable methods to get things done in the past, if the situation warranted. Castiel had no particular desire to lie to his friends, but on the other hand, he was an expert by now on evasion and obfuscation. In effect, what they were looking to do was stealing, in a way. But if they were to find any remains, royal or otherwise, or any other artifacts, those would be left alone. This was the Earth Tablet, after all, and it was going to be used to save all of the denizens of Earth. Cas had absolutely no compunctions whatsoever about taking it.

But Crowley had used the word "cheat", too, and that was a very complicated word, in some respects. It had many different interpretations and implications. Cas would decide for himself, if and when the time came, where the line had to be drawn. It wouldn't be Crowley deciding for him, but it wouldn't be Bobby or the Winchesters, either. Lucifer had to be stopped. That was the mission.

"This earthquake was just the opening salvo, Castiel. You know how these things work by now. Be very, very careful," Crowley said. "Call me if you need to." He snapped his fingers and disappeared.

When Cas re-entered the bunker, Bobby was there with Kevin, Chuck, and Ethan. "Dean called and told me your reporter friend here has put together a slide show, sort of a crash course on Egyptian culture, and what we can expect to see when we get there."

Castiel shrugged. He didn't need it, but it was a good idea for the humans and maybe especially for Gail, he thought. Soon they would have to endure their forced separation, and he would be unable to assist her with any inquiries she may have.

That was, if she would even be looking to speak with him at all. She'd given him a brief glance when he'd popped back in, but now she was sitting on the couch talking to Frank and Jody. Little Robbie was sitting on Barry's knee, telling him and Tommy how cool Disneyland had been.

Tommy looked up at Cas. "OK, if everyone's here now, I'll get started," he told them. He and Sam had hooked his laptop up to the TV, and Tommy clicked on the first photo now.

"The Valley of the Kings," he said. "This is where the tombs are."

"Wow," Chuck said, and the rest of them agreed. Tommy showed them a few more slides of the area, and everyone was amazed. It really did look like something out of the movies.

"The temperature will be swelteringly hot," Tommy told them. "It'll remain so until late November or early December. Too bad you couldn't go then. It would still be toasty, but right now, it'll be hot as...well, you know."

"Balls," Bobby said, and the men laughed. Gail did not. "Great," she lamented. She hated the heat, worse than...well, almost anything. At least if it was cold, she could bundle up. Or she could normally just cuddle with Cas if she was cold. But that wouldn't even be an option on this trip, so it was probably just as well.

She turned around on the couch and looked at him. He was standing in the library area, and as soon as he saw her look his way, they made eye contact. Now she was feeling sorry for her childish behaviour earlier. She knew that there was no way she had anything to worry about when it came to Cas and those women. Whatever occasional moments he were to spend at this palace they were ensconcing him in would likely be spent trying to avoid the women from the harem at all costs. Gail could picture him running around the place, doing a sort of reverse hide-and-seek. It was kind of funny, if you thought about it.

"Come here, Cas," she said to him. He walked over to the couch. "Move over, Barry," she said to their friend. "Make room for Cas to sit down."

"Here, I'll get up," Jody said. "It's time for Robbie to go to bed, anyway."

"No! I want Barry to take me!" Robbie exclaimed.

Barry smiled. "It's OK, I'll take him. Makes more sense, anyway; that way, you can continue to watch the slide show. You're going to Egypt, not me."

Jody looked thoughtful for a moment. "OK, thanks, Barry," she said. Barry lifted Robbie off his lap and said, "Let's go, Robbie. You can tell me a couple more stories about Disneyland as I'm tucking you in."

Cas took the space on the couch that Barry had vacated, and Gail said, "There's room, if anyone else wants to come here and sit with us."

"What do you mean?" Frank said. "No, there's not."

Gail squirmed onto Cas's lap. "There is now," she said innocently.

Cas was pleasantly surprised, and his arms went around her immediately. "I'm sorry," she said to him. "I was just being a big baby. I know you would never do anything with any of those women."

"Of course not," Cas assured her. "It's only a cover story. The palace is very large. I'm sure I won't even see any of them."

"OK, Cas," she said softly, kissing him on the cheek. "OK. I don't want to fight any more."

"So, we won't," Cas assured her. He nuzzled her cheek with his.

Bobby cleared his throat. "All right, you two. Ya know, I can't wait till you get married. Then we won't have to put up with this huggy-kissy crap all the time."

Castiel's brow furrowed. Why would their getting married stop their ability to hug and kiss each other? If anything, as far as he was concerned, it meant that they would be doing it even more often.

"I'll tell you later," Gail murmured in his ear, smiling. She'd seen his puzzled look at what Bobby had said. "But right now, we'd better get back to the slide show." She shifted her position in Cas's lap slightly to look at Tommy. "I'm sorry for the interruption, Tommy. Go ahead."

Now Cas was starting to feel a little uncomfortable. He loved that she was no longer angry with him, but he wished she would stop moving like that. He was starting to feel excited by her proximity to him, and when she had shifted her position, his hands had accidentally touched her bare skin for a moment. He wanted to lift her from his lap and put her beside him on the couch, but he didn't know how he could do that without hurting her feelings.

But luckily, Tommy was returning to his presentation now, so everyone's attention would be on that, and Cas could calm down a little.

"So, as I was saying about the temperature, everyone just make sure that you wear hats and sunglasses, and slather on the sunscreen. And wear sturdy shoes. No sandals or flip-flops, or anything like that. The footing at a lot of these dig sites can be very tricky. And you'll be converting your dollars into piastres, and pounds. There's a conversion rate chart in your packages."

"How do we get to the dig site from our hotel?" Sam wanted to know.

"There are several ways to go about that," Tommy replied. "Most people rent cars or take tour buses, but you can even ride there on a donkey, if you want to go old-school."

"I was kind of hoping I'd get to ride a camel at some point," Dean piped up.

"Sorry, Dean, that's out of one of your movies," Tommy told him. "I'm not saying there aren't any camels there, I'm just saying you probably won't have the opportunity to get on one."

Frank said, "I know nobody else is going to ask this, so I will: How, or where, do we go to the bathroom when we get out there?"

Tommy smiled. "They have porta-loos, which are exactly what the name suggests."

"That probably won't be much of a problem," Sam said. "We'll likely be way too dehydrated from the heat to have to go much, anyway."

Chuck had been thinking about the camels. "Are there still nomads who ride around in the desert, or am I thinking like the movies, too?" he asked Tommy.

"Yes, and no," Tommy replied. "There are Bedouins. They're Arabs who used to be desert wanderers, but they've had to conform to modern society's standards, for the most part. Those guys mainly work at conventional jobs now, but every now and then, they still like to go out on a jaunt. You may see them after hours, once all the tourists have left."

"They wouldn't have anything to do with us, though, would they?" Chuck asked.

Tommy shrugged. "Probably not. Bedouins have a hierarchy of loyalties based on proximity of kinship. Immediate family, outward." Sam and Dean smiled at each other. They could definitely approve of that philosophy.

Tommy continued, "The Bedouin tribes can be related by blood, but they can also be related by marriage. The latter relationship is considered just as close." The brothers smiled at their friends. That was Frank and Jody now, and Robbie by extension, of course. And it would be Cas and Gail soon, too. But to Sam and Dean, they were already all family. They didn't need a piece of paper or some vows to tell them how they felt. "Then there are the cousins," Tommy added, and those were the Angels, of course, and Barry and Tommy now, too. Even Crowley, in a way.

"Tribes traditionally have just the one head, like you all have God," Tommy went on. "The Bedouins are big on livestock and the herding of animals, and they're generally a very peace-loving group. If you leave them alone, they'll leave you alone."

That was certainly true, Castiel thought. There had been one time, in the ancient times, that he had gone wandering out there with his flock, and he hadn't seen another soul for a couple of years, at least. That had been a great time of serenity, prayer, and contemplation.

"Camels are gifts from God," Cas blurted out. "If you are dehydrated and in need of nourishment, they can be milked even in extreme desert humidity."

They all looked at him for a moment. He had a dreamlike look on his face, as if he were suddenly being transported back to the past. Biblical times, maybe. Things had been far from perfect back then, Castiel was thinking, but at least they had been far simpler. Occasionally, he felt tempted to return to that type of a minimalist lifestyle. His arms tightened around Gail. He wondered how she would feel if he were to suggest that, at least for a while. At least this time he would have someone to converse with, instead of the very one-sided conversations he'd had with the animals. She could help him with the flock, and at night, they could lay together, looking at the stars and talking. He had many centuries' worth of stories that he could tell her. He kissed her softly on the cheek. How wonderful that would be. No enemies, no killings. Just peace and love and serenity.

Gail smiled. She was sure that Cas was thinking about the olden days. Literally. There was still so much she had to learn about him, and from him.

Tommy picked up the narrative. "Most of the Bedouins these days are settled, with sedentary, conventional jobs. But they do still go out on the occasional midnight camel ride, just for old times' sake. They also raise and breed white doves, and some of them practice falconry in their spare time. But not all of them are so gentle, or so content." He frowned and changed the slide. Suddenly, they were looking at quite a different type of Bedouin. Tommy had been showing them robe-clad men, women and children feeding and raising livestock, and walking through city streets hand-in-hand as they crossed the street. A nice mix of modern and old school, and the people had all looked happy.

But the men they saw on this new slide did not look happy. "Then there are the militants," Tommy told them. "The Egyptian government expropriated much of the Bedouins' land, and even if they were still to roam around, there would be very few places that they could go now that they could call their own. It's like the American Indian, in a way. Big Brother, marching in and taking your land for themselves, telling you how they think you should be living your life. No wonder some of them are really bitter. But these guys have taken it to the extreme. Their solution is to be involved with shady people, and a lot of the militants are into drug-and-weapons smuggling. They figure if they can accumulate enough money, and enough weapons, they can get their land back somehow. So the tension is thick in some areas, between them and the government, obviously, but also between the different factions of Bedouins. The gentle livestock farmers think the militia men are way too radical and are giving them all a bad name, whereas the militia think the shepherds should join them and rebel against the government. They believe if they don't all rise up together in revolution, they will lose their entire culture."

"So what you're telling us is that some Arabs Bedouin' good things, and some Bedouin' bad things," Frank piped up.

Silence.

"I want a divorce," Jody said.

"Never mind, Jody, we'll just turn him over to the Egyptian government when we get there," Gail said cheerfully. "A couple more jokes like that, and I'll be scalping tickets to his public flogging."

"Two, please, up front," Dean said, pretending to reach for his wallet.

After the laughter died down, Kevin asked Tommy, "What kind of wild animals are there going to be there? I know intellectually that I'm an Angel so they can't really hurt me, but I've always had a thing about snakes. Besides, I'm sure these guys would want to know that stuff." He indicated the Winchesters, and Frank and Jody.

"Funny you should ask; I was just about to get to that," Tommy said. "Probably the four worst, as far as wild animals go, are your snakes, your scorpions, your weasels, and your mongooses. Or is it mongeese?" He put a slide on the TV screen of a black scorpion, and Gail made a face. "Actually, black scorpions' venom doesn't generally kill," Tommy told them. "The only scorpion you have to worry about doing you in is this guy." He changed slides. "The Palestinian yellow scorpion, which is thankfully rare where you'll be going. Both scorpions are gross to look at, I know, Gail." Tommy smiled at her. She was making another face of disgust. She'd always had a thing about bugs. "This yellow one is extremely fatal, though," Tommy continued, "so remember what it looks like. If you ever see one, run very quickly in the opposite direction." As Kevin shuddered, Tommy added, "Oh, and before I forget, I meant to expand on Cas's point about camels. A camel has one hump; a dromedary has two. And just in case you ever need to know, they can store water in their humps for weeks on end."

Cas smiled. They certainly could. Tommy had really done his homework. He smiled at their friend, nodding his approval.

Tommy changed slides again. "OK, back to the animals you want to avoid. The saw-scaled viper makes a harsh, rasping sound across the sand. If you ever hear that, get away, as fast as you can. Their venom is deadly." Then he showed them another slide of a different kind of a snake. "The Sand Boa, on the other hand, is non-venomous; it's only a small snake, just a couple of feet long. But it helps keep the rodent population in check, so hunting or killing it is forbidden."

"Damn, I hate snakes," Dean said. "Can't we just tell them we're Americans, and kill them all, just on general principles?"

Castiel frowned. "Dean, the purpose of this educational session is to learn about the Egyptian way of life, and to assimilate as best we can while we're there."

"He's right," Bobby said. "The last thing we would need is you hauled off to some Egyptian jail because you killed the wrong kind of snake. Now, pay attention."

Tommy smiled. God may be down-to-earth, but he definitely had the voice of authority. Dean's mouth snapped shut.

Tommy showed them a couple more slides. "Sand cats. Desert foxes. Both of these animals are unusual looking, but they're not particularly dangerous. They would likely run away before having any sort of confrontation with you."

The screen went dark for a moment, but Tommy continued to speak, checking his notes. "You'll want mosquito netting around your beds at night, especially if your hotel room has an open patio, which many of them do."

"Isn't there any air conditioning in the hotels?" Gail asked, alarmed.

"It gets cool in the desert at night," Tommy told her. "You shouldn't need it."

Yeah, right, Gail thought. She'd believe that when she felt it. God, she hated the heat.

"It does get quite cool at night," Cas assured her. "It's kind of like Las Vegas in that respect."

Gail shrugged. "I sure hope so. Otherwise, I'll just have to pop over to your palace. I'm sure such an esteemed member of Egyptian society will have all the comforts. Or maybe you'll just get all of your wives to stand over you and fan you, in unison."

"Say what, now?" Sam said.

"There's been a slight change of plans," Tommy told them. "Cas is going in as a member of the royal family. His name will be Sheikh Faraz al-Tayeb Mahmoud Shakir."

"Can you write that out on an index card?" Sam quipped.

"Doesn't matter; you'll all just be calling him 'Sheikh', anyway. You would never presume to call a member of the royal family by anything other than their title," Tommy responded.

Sam and Dean looked at each other, then they looked at Cas. He was trying not to smile at the expressions on their faces.

"What's this about wives?" Chuck asked Tommy.

"Cas has a harem of fourteen wives as part of his cover story," Tommy replied.

"Fourteen wives? Lucky bastard," Chuck said, shaking his head. The rich really did get richer, didn't they?

"If you think that was lucky, you didn't see Gail's face when she found out," Cas told Chuck. "I think that was the real reason why Crowley left in such a hurry. She scared him to death."

Gail couldn't help but smile at Cas's quip. "What kind of clothes should I bring, Tommy?" Gail asked him. "I know, lots."

"Yeah, I was wondering that same thing myself," Jody said.

"For you ladies, more is definitely more," Tommy said. "You'll need to wear long sleeves and pants, or ankle length skirts. I'd recommend loose clothing. Most women wear a pashmina or other kind of wrap on top, as well."

"Man, I feel hot just thinking about it," Gail complained.

"What about us?" Dean asked.

Tommy shrugged. "Doesn't matter. Jeans and T-shirts are fine, though I'd stay away from anything political. Maybe just wear plain T-shirts, just to be on the safe side. Stick with solid colours. Maybe leave the flannel at home," he continued, his lips twitching now. "Cas advises me that you guys are partial to that, but it'll be too warm for the desert, anyway." And maybe you want to have a bit more of a sophisticated look, something a little more sophisticated than looking like Nebraska corn farmers, Tommy thought, but did not say. He really liked Sam and Dean, but man, they could certainly benefit from an upgrade to their wardrobes.

"Oh, Cas says, does he?" Dean said. "And what will His Highness be wearing?"

"A gallibaya, which is a long shirt, with a striped kaftan over it," Tommy responded, smiling. He felt like they had segued from Wild Kingdom into America's Top Model, or something. "The kaftan is full-length, like a coat, with wide, long sleeves. The coat's open in the front, tied by a fabric belt. He can wear pants underneath, but that's entirely optional." Suddenly it felt very warm in the room. Tommy deliberately avoided looking at Cas. He shouldn't be thinking about what their friend may or may not be packing under there. It was a good thing that Barry had left the room to tuck Robbie in. Barry had been attracted to Cas since Day One; Tommy still teased him about it, from time to time.

"So basically, you can fly and be free, if you want," Dean said to Cas, smirking. "You know, there's something to be said for that, especially in that kind of heat."

"Hopefully, none of those wives will be picking out your clothes in the morning," Sam said, grinning.

Cas gave him a baleful look. Thanks for helping, Sam. "Why would you say something like that?" he berated Sam. Cas could feel Gail's body tense.

"Yes, exactly how DOES that work, Tommy?" Gail asked. She was trying to sound casual, but Cas could hear the slight edge in her voice.

"He'll have a manservant," Tommy said. "Kind of like a personal assistant-slash-butler."

"Oh, my God," Dean said, rolling his eyes. "Must be nice."

"Oh, like you would want a butler dressing you every day," Sam said scornfully. "'Do you want to wear the blue flannel, sir, or the red?'"

Gail laughed, and Dean looked at her. "So, fourteen wives, huh?" he said, and she stopped smiling.

"Dean," Cas said miserably.

"It's OK, Cas, we all know you don't want fourteen wives," Dean said cheerfully. "So why don't we help you out with that? I'll take, say, four off your hands. Sammy'll be good for three. Chuck, two, Kevin, two, Ethan...nah, you were married, you probably don't want in. Jody's got a gun, so I'm not even going to ask you, Frank. So, how many does that leave? You want in on this, Bobby?"

"I could take at least one more, if it'll help the numbers come out right," Chuck said, grinning.

"Oh, look at you guys," Gail said sarcastically. "Suddenly, you're math savants."

"Yeah. Idjit savants," Bobby added dryly.

"Thank you, Bobby! That was just the term I was searching for," Gail said gleefully.

Cas was very quiet now. He wished everyone would just leave the subject alone. He had realized he'd be in for a bit of teasing about it, but he was engaged now, and there was simply no question of anything untoward happening. Not that there would have been before, or would be, ever. But Cas was beginning to feel insulted, and their friends were being insulting to Gail, as well.

"That's enough," he said with quiet authority. "I know you all think you're being very funny, but this is a sensitive subject for both Gail and I right now. She knows that I would never do anything to violate the sanctity of our relationship, but what you are doing now is insulting to us both, and you need to cease immediately."

A silence fell over the room, and Gail looked into Cas's eyes and smiled. She kissed him gently on the cheek. "Thank you, sweetie," she said to him, and he wrapped his arms tighter around her waist.

But the situation was still bothering her. Gail trusted Cas, and she knew that he was being entirely sincere, but it was still making her nuts. She kept picturing all of those beautiful, sweet, submissive women, feeding him grapes by hand, lightly rubbing his temples, taking off his shoes, helping him to relax. Was she just being ridiculous, buying into the stereotype? Or was it just because she was going to be stuck all the way across town from him? Hopefully, just because half of her face had to be covered, that didn't mean that her mind would be closed, as well. Damn Crowley. He had planted the seeds in her brain, but she needed to shake that off now.

"Robbie's down for the count," Barry announced. He had just come down the hall, and he noticed that things had gotten very quiet all of a sudden. He could sense the tension in the room, so he thought that he could at least reassure Frank and Jody that their son was taken care of.

"Which brings us to be the big question," Bobby said. "If you two come with us to Egypt, what are you going to do about Robbie?" he asked the couple.

They exchanged glances, and so did Barry and Tommy. "If everyone's OK with it, we might have a solution," Tommy said. "Barry and I are homeless at the moment anyway, and he's quit his job now. If you trust us, we could stay here and look after him until you get back."

Frank and Jody looked at each other, and then they looked at the men. "You'd really be willing to do that?" Jody asked them.

"We'd love to," Barry said. "We both love kids, and if there's anything we can do to help out, we're only too glad to do it."

"That's if you're OK with two 'gay guys' looking after your child," Tommy said to Frank with a half-smile.

"Hey, as long as you treat him right, I don't give a damn how gay you are," Frank said, shrugging. "Kid's been through an awful lot, in a short period of time."

Jody frowned. "Damn it, Frank. I wanted him to be able to start school as soon as we came back from Disneyland."

Frank took her hand. "Jodes, if we don't stop Lucifer, attending school will be the least of his problems," he said grimly.

Cas was nodding his approval of Frank's statement, and Bobby said, "Frank's right, Jody. Short-term pain for long-term gain."

"And if Sam and Dean are OK with us staying here, we can home-school him every day," Tommy said. "History, geography, literature, whatever you think is appropriate."

"Yeah, of course you'll stay here," Dean said. "Lucifer's already screwed around with the two of you, and this place has every known protection. At least that's one thing Crowley was useful for."

"If you want me to, Bobby, I can put a couple of my officers outside for extra protection," Ethan chipped in.

"As long as they're more competent than the one you had watching his mother," Castiel said bluntly.

Ethan regarded him evenly. Cas was a good guy, but Castiel the Angel could be a dick sometimes. Still, he was not wrong. The last Angel that Ethan had had guarding Felicia's house had made an error in judgement, and she had subsequently been murdered. Ethan had put in a lot of long hours since, in an effort to ensure that that type of mistake would never happen again. At the end of the day, Ethan was the head of the department, so the responsibility rested with him. But Ethan didn't exactly see Cas offering to help. Too busy planning his wedding, maybe. But then again, maybe Ethan was being a little unfair on that score. Bobby may be coming along on the mission and bringing the Musketeers with him, but it was becoming increasingly apparent to Ethan who was really going to be in charge of this operation. So he supposed that Cas did have a lot on his plate at the moment.

"Barry and Tommy are the two witnesses, then," Gail said suddenly.

"We're the what?" Barry inquired good-naturedly.

"The two witnesses, from the Book of Revelation," Gail answered. Then she smiled. "Don't worry. That's a good thing." At least, she thought it was. Wasn't it? She didn't remember exactly what the Bible had said about the witnesses, only that they had eventually ascended. But Cas was frowning. He knew better, but he did not say so.

"Oh, OK. As long as it's a good thing," Barry said, smiling at her. This was Gail; she and Cas were his and Tommy's Angels, and anything she said was good enough for him.

Sam yawned. "Are you finished with the slide show, Tommy?" he asked. "If so, I wonder if we should just pack it in for the night. I don't know about any of my other fellow humans, but I like to be alert when I'm walking into a dangerous, politically charged situation."

They all smiled wryly. "Good point, Sam," Bobby said. "Let's go, guys," he said to the Musketeers. "We'll be back down in the morning. What time do you want to leave?" he asked the Winchesters.

Dean thought for a minute. "Nine a.m.?" he said, looking at Sam, Frank and Jody. "That way we can get some coffee and breakfast into us before we get there and have to start eating all kinds of weird food."

Bobby and the Angels said goodnight, and Sam looked at Barry and Tommy. "You guys can stay in Cas and Gail's room tonight, if that's OK with them. They don't sleep anyway, and I'll bet you anything they're going to be kissing and canoodling all night, considering they're going to be separated by a whole couple of miles tomorrow," he teased lightly.

"No, what we're going to be separated by is eons and eons of unchecked male chauvinism," Gail groused.

Everyone said goodnight to her and Cas, and soon, they were alone. Gail had finally gotten off his lap, and she sat beside him on the couch now.

"I'm sorry things will have to be this way," Cas told her, holding both of her hands in his. "I promise you, I will do everything in my power to make sure we have a quick and successful mission."

"I know you will, Cas," she said. Then she sighed. "I guess I've been pretty unreasonable about this whole thing, haven't I? You have enough to worry about, without me acting like the biggest baby in the world."

"I don't think you're being unreasonable at all," Cas told her. "I wish we did not have to be separated. I wish we were already married."

"I do too, in a way," Gail said, squeezing his hands. "But in another way, I'm really glad we still have all of that to look forward to. When I start to feel sorry for myself over there, I'll just start to fantasize about our wedding. And it's not like I won't get to see you at all. We'll both be at the dig site, right? If they won't let me approach you, or even talk to you, at least I can bat my doe eyes at you from across the tomb."

Cas laughed, and then his expression turned serious. "If I had my existence to live all over again, I would have found you centuries sooner." He touched her ring. "And I would have had a lot longer to think of how to properly ask you to marry me."

"What do you mean?" Gail said, puzzled. "I thought that what you said was just perfect."

"No, I was too nervous," Cas said, shaking his head. "If I had been able to think clearly, I should have quoted Hosea: 'I will engage myself to you forever; And I will engage myself to you in righteousness, In loyal love and in mercy. And I will engage myself to you in faithfulness.'" He kissed her hands softly. "Gail, you know that I would never let any female break our bond, don't you? Please, I want to hear you say it."

"Yes, of course I know that, Cas," she told him. "I was just letting my imagination get the better of me."

"Another thing you can think of, when you're thinking, is where you'd like to live, and visualize the type of house you want," Cas said. Then he snapped his fingers. "In fact, if you'd like, we can ask Barry and Tommy to check some local real estate listings while we're away."

"Cas, that's a great idea!" Gail exclaimed.

He smiled. "It's settled, then. That will give us something to look forward to when we return."

"I love you, Cas," she said, kissing him on the cheek.

"I love you too, Gail. Please, do not ever forget that. I will merely be playing a part there, nothing more," Castiel said earnestly. He nuzzled her cheek. "You know, they say that it can be exciting to deceive others into thinking that you are strangers," he said softly, smiling.

"That's really funny, coming from someone who told me he wants to stay away from any excitement until after the wedding," Gail said into his ear.

"Anticipation can also be a glorious thing," Cas said. His lips grazed her cheek. "I waited for you since the beginning of time, didn't I?"

"Give me just one more kiss, and then you're going to have to go and sit in that chair over there, before I lose my mind," Gail told him.

He kissed her on the mouth, but only lightly. He didn't dare kiss her the way he really wanted to; that would just be asking for trouble. He'd had years of training in self-discipline in Heaven, and even though that particular quality had never been his strong suit, he meant to use every ounce of it he did possess now. After all, he was the one who was asking this of her, so he must lead by example.

Cas rose slowly from the couch and walked over to the bookshelves. He grabbed the book in their series that he had been reading to her from last and brought it back to the armchair.

"Ready?" he asked her.

She nodded, smiling. She was more than ready. Gail was actually glad they had stopped when they had. She could tell how much it meant to Cas to wait until they were married, so now, it meant something to her, too. If he could exhibit self-control, she should be able to, too.

Gail stretched out on the couch as Cas started reading to her. Normally, she would close her eyes in order to visualize in her mind's eye the scene he was describing, and also to concentrate on his voice. But this time she kept her eyes open, studying him as he read to her. The way his hair would fall over his forehead when he bent to the book. He usually kept it fairly short, but if things got particularly hectic in their lives, sometimes his hair would get a bit long, and he wouldn't seem to notice. Then, one day, it would be short again, and then the cycle would repeat itself. It was getting long again now, and he swept it back unconsciously with his hand as he continued to read. He was probably letting it grow so he could look more like a Sheikh. His face was already dark with stubble. She knew that if he didn't shave tomorrow, he would already be growing a beard. And that was the idea, of course. Apparently Egyptian men were suspicious of men who couldn't or wouldn't grow beards, and as a supposed member of the royal family, Cas would have to have one, of course. He'd told her that a few things could be explained away. They were going to say that he had been away from his culture for a few years getting schooled in America and in Western ways, and that was why he would speak very little Arabic, and why he would sometimes wear trousers and shirts. But once he got to Egypt, his Western ways would have to go.

As Cas continued to read to her, she watched his eyes as they scanned the pages. Every once in a while, he would look up, reacting to her steady gaze, and he would smile. His eyes would brighten in colour when he did that, and they were such a beautiful blue. She loved the way he acted out all the parts, too, and the intonations he used during the narrative. He would gesture with his head or his hand every now and then, and she wasn't sure if he was even aware that he was doing it. It was so cute.

Then she looked at his hands as he turned the pages of the book. He had strong hands, but whenever he touched her with them or they had held hands, his skin felt so soft, and his touch was so gentle. His fingers were caressing the pages of the book lovingly, just like they would caress her skin. Cas obviously loved the printed word, just as Gail herself did, and always had. The two of them had many differing qualities, but that was something they'd always shared in common. She couldn't wait for him to set up a few bookshelves in their new home. They would have a set of these books, of course, and she would make it a point to find out what some of his favourite books were. They hadn't really talked in much detail about that. Considering how long he'd been around, he could probably introduce her to many of the classics. Maybe she could read to him sometimes, when he was in need of some relaxation. Their books would be well-loved, and there would be no dog-ears in them, and no dust on them.

Gail could see Cas's Adam's Apple move as he continued to read. Funny, she didn't usually notice that particular feature on him. It was something that all males had, and unless it was particularly prominent, you didn't really think too much about it. And in Cas's case, it was his vessel's body, anyway. She seldom separated the two in her mind, though. But as she thought more about it, Gail thought it was funny to be thinking about Cas's Adam's Apple at all. After all, when Cas had been Abel, Adam had been Cas's father. She stopped to think about that for an extra moment. Adam and Eve had been Crowley and Cas's parents. It was a good thing that she was already lying down, because the concept was almost too much for her to handle.

Then she studied the rest of him, and by the time she had gotten down to his thighs, Gail realized that she had better quit what she was thinking, because she was making herself nuts again. She ought to just concentrate on the story. It was almost like she'd been trying to affix every detail of him in her mind, for the upcoming time that they would have to be apart. It was no wonder that they made their friends so nauseous, really. She and Cas were probably only going to be kept apart physically for a day or two. It wasn't exactly the end of the world.

Castiel had been enjoying reading to Gail, and he had been enjoying feeling the warmth of her gaze on him. He knew what she was doing, because he had pretty much been doing the same thing. Her beautiful, warm brown eyes. She was always saying that his eyes were more beautiful than hers, because hers were brown. But Cas had looked into those eyes a lot, and he couldn't explain to her how entranced he felt every time he looked into them. There were many different tiny flecks of colour in her eyes, depending on her mood. He could understand on an intellectual level why she objected to having the lower half of her face covered, simply because she happened to be female. But Cas was looking forward to seeing her that way in Egypt, simply because looking at her face covered in that manner would make her eyes stand out even more. 'Doe eyes' didn't even begin to cover it. The first time he saw her like that in Egypt, it was going to take all the self-control he had not to run over to where she stood and kiss her, right then and there.

But Cas was also preoccupied. Tommy had done the best job that he could, but Cas was not convinced that it would be enough. His Father had always been a big believer in backup plans, and Castiel realized now that he had better have one, as well. And it had better be a good one.

Even while he was reading to Gail, an idea was forming in Cas's mind. He had been mentally taken back to ancient times earlier, when Tommy had been painting a picture of Egyptian desert life for the others. Cas was planning to pass himself off as a member of King Tut's royal family, but Castiel was now reminded that he actually belonged to a much older, and much more regal, family. Perhaps a little Biblical research was in order.

He finished the page he'd been reading, and then he looked at Gail. "I need to look at the computer for a bit. Do you mind?"

"No, of course not," she said. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

Cas rose from the chair. "No, not really," he said lightly. "I just thought that I should brush up on a few Arabic words and phrases. Tommy has arranged for me to leave by a private jet very early in the morning, and they know that I'm coming from the United States, so they'll be expecting me to be 'Westernized', to a certain extent. Still, it couldn't hurt to ingratiate myself by being able to speak a smattering of Arabic, and I haven't spoken any in many, many years."

Gail shook her head slowly. "There's still so much I don't know about you, isn't there?"

He brought her the book he'd been reading and kissed her on the forehead. "Well then, it's lucky that we're eternal beings, isn't it? We'll have the rest of our existences to talk about those kinds of things."

Cas went to the computer and checked on the information for his flight in the morning. There was a private jet picking him up in Washington, D.C., just after dawn. Even non-stop, the flight would last nearly fifteen hours, so he would have plenty of time alone, to bone up on the language and begin to settle into his erstwhile persona. But he wanted to know if it might be possible for him to pull off what he'd had in mind with any plausibility in the modern world, and he had forgotten exactly what they all had been.

He found them right away, of course, and he listed them all quickly on a sheet of paper, which he would burn as soon as he had committed it to memory. But first, he needed to get them memorized, and in the right order.

After Cas had been on the computer for a while, he saw Gail rise from the couch out of the corner of his eye. He exited what he'd been looking at immediately, and he folded the sheet of paper so that she would not see what was written on it. By the time she got to his side, he'd put a website on the screen that displayed simple Arabic words and phrases.

"Have you been looking at that all this time?" Gail asked him, leaning over his shoulder to look at the computer screen.

"I guess I'm rustier than I thought," Cas said, shrugging.

She kissed him on the cheek. "Well, it'll be sunrise in just a bit," she said to him. "I think I'll go outside and watch. Why don't you come, if you're done studying?"

"We'll see," Cas said vaguely.

Well, she'd tried. She guessed he was preoccupied with what he was studying now. "OK, Cas. Well, I'm going, anyway. It might be the last cool breeze I get to feel in quite a while. But don't worry, I won't go past the perimeter."

Cas nodded absently. Wow. He must really be worried about his Arabic, because he didn't give her his customary warning.

Gail popped outside and was startled for an instant to see a figure seated in one of the lounge chairs. She took out her blade and spoke the Enochian word to make the light come out of the hilt so that she could make out who it was.

"Very good, sweetheart," Crowley said. "Just like I taught you."

Gail sat down in the chair next to him. "What are YOU doing here?" she asked him curiously. Then it occurred to her that she wasn't even particularly surprised.

"I've been waiting to talk to Castiel," Crowley told her.

"You're waiting? To talk to Cas?" she echoed. Now she was really surprised.

"Yes. He called a few minutes ago and said he wanted to talk to me, before he flies out this morning," Crowley replied.

"Oh." Gail closed her mouth, then opened it, then closed it again. Strange. She'd told Cas she was coming out here, and he hadn't mentioned a thing about it.

"Let me guess; he didn't tell you," Crowley said.

"That's right, he didn't," Gail confirmed.

Crowley was pleased by that fact. It illustrated to him that Castiel had taken their earlier conversation to heart, and that he was morphing into warrior Castiel now. Castiel had told Crowley what he had in mind when he'd called him on their private frequency earlier, and Crowley had been impressed. It was the backup plan that Castiel had mentioned that Crowley was here to discuss.

"I apologize," Cas said. He appeared in front of them, having winked himself outside from the library area. He'd been so distracted when Gail had advised that she was coming outside that it had not occurred to him that Crowley would already be out here. Crowley could not enter the bunker, of course, and Castiel did not have the authority to invite him inside. Cas leaned down and kissed Gail on the forehead. "Can you leave us alone to speak privately, please?"

Gail made a face. "Any chance you're willing to tell me what this is all about?" she asked him.

"I think it's best that you don't know. For now, anyway," Castiel said grimly.

Gail looked back and forth between him and Crowley. So, the new role had begun, already. She sighed. "All right, Cas," she said. She rose from her chair, gave the two of them one more glance, and then winked herself inside.

Both men looked at the empty space where she'd been, surprised. No more questions, no arguments?

"Are you SURE she didn't promise to obey?" Crowley smirked. "Or maybe she just doesn't want you to be able to make too much comparison, when you get to the palace and meet your wives."

"Very amusing," Castiel said sarcastically, sitting in the seat she had just vacated. "So, what do you think? Could it be a viable backup plan?"

"Not only do I think it's viable, I think it's one of the best ideas you've ever had," Crowley said, "provided you've got the bollocks to carry it all the way through to the end, if you should need to. But if you're not prepared to follow through and carry out the last one, you might as well not even bother."

"It may not have to come to that," Cas said uncomfortably. "They may back down well before that point."

"They won't," Crowley said firmly. "They never learn, Castiel. But I must say, I think it's a bloody marvelous idea. Worthy of me, even."

Cas frowned. He was starting to detach now, in preparation for the role he was about to play. But he did not particularly appreciate Crowley's comment.

"I am NOT you, nor am I a dog, in need of praise from his master," Castiel said sharply. "Rest assured that I will be prepared to do what needs to be done, IF it needs to be done. Just make sure that you are ready to do your part, when I need you to do it."

"Oooh, I'm all tingly in my naughty bits," Crowley said, smirking. But he was extremely pleased to see this version of Castiel. It had been entirely too long, and it was just what they needed to try to kick the Devil's arse. "It's a pity I wouldn't look very good in a diaphanous veil and gown; otherwise, I might just have to become Number 15. Maybe you should keep some of that attitude for the wedding night, Castiel. I'm sure Gail would appreciate your...instruction, in a few matters." Then he snapped his fingers, and he was gone. He knew a good exit line when he'd uttered it.

Cas sat there for a minute. Crowley was being disgusting as usual, but Cas actually understood what he meant, strangely enough. Or maybe it wasn't so strange, after all. Castiel and Crowley went way, way back, further than Cas went back with anyone, except for God. They may not like each other, but they did understand each other. This wasn't a child's game they were playing here, and if some beings had to be sacrificed along the way, Cas knew he would have to find a way to be OK with that.

As soon as he noticed the sun creeping up on the horizon, Cas sent Gail a message and asked her to come outside and join him. She winked to his side immediately, and they watched the sun rise together.

She turned to him. "Tommy said to tell you he's ready whenever you are," Gail told him.

Cas sighed. So soon. "Thank you," he said to her. "I'd better go, then. Come here, please." He opened his arms, and she snuggled into them.

"I'm not going to ask you what that was all about," Gail said. "I trust you, Cas."

His arms tightened around her. "I'm glad," was all he said. Well, she would just have to trust that he would be able to make the appropriate decisions, when the time came. He was reminded of another time when he had deliberately kept something from her because, as the saying went, it was much easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission. He did not want to suffer her censure now, if he told her about his plan and it ended up that he would have to carry through with the last step of it.

He kissed her on the mouth, and this time, he parted her lips with his tongue. This one would have to last them for a while. She gave him her tongue on return, likely thinking the same thing, and he held her close for a moment. Then he broke the kiss and stood away from her.

"The next time you see me, I will be the Sheikh, and I will do what I have to do to get that Tablet," Cas said quietly.

Gail recognized what he was doing now. It was the same thing he had done when he had been about to go to Purgatory. He was detaching.

"All right, Sheikh," she said. "I'll send Tommy out to see you, then." She looked at his face once more, and then she winked herself back into the bunker.

Bobby had already arrived, and he came outside with Tommy. Once Cas's human friend had put him on the plane in Washington, Bobby would wink Tommy back here. Then the rest of them could travel to Egypt, the Angel way. How ironic that the humans would be transported by their Angel friends instantaneously, but the longest-serving Angel of them all would have to go the long, laborious human way. But that was by design. Tommy was going to report on Cas's departure for Egypt as a human-interest story. The last known surviving member of King Tut's royal family, heading back to his homeland for the opening of the additional, newly discovered chambers of his ancestor's gravesite. If there were any human remains that were discovered, they would belong to his family, not the Egyptian government, he was going to argue. So, he had a right to be there at the dig site. At least, that was the story that Tommy was going to post, and he had made arrangements with a couple of his contacts at the other end to report on Cas's arrival in his private plane on the other end. They were going to interview him regarding his expectations once he got to the tomb, and they were going to make sure that his arrival in Egypt made the headlines.

They had enough facts on their side to make the story seem plausible, but now that Cas had his backup plan in place, he felt much more confident. If they would not take his word that he was born of the royal family, he would have to prove it to them by invoking one of the oldest curses in recorded history. And then, if they still would not open the chamber for him, he would put that curse into motion. Castiel only hoped that it would not come to that.


	3. Midnight At The Oasis

Chapter 3 - Midnight At The Oasis

Gail went down to the lobby of their hotel and sat on one of the couches there, waiting for Frank and Jody. They had told her they'd meet her in fifteen minutes, but the fifteen minutes had become more than half an hour now, and they still weren't here.

She sighed, trying to be patient. She was pretty sure she knew what was going on here. They had "honeymooned" in Disneyland with a young child, and for all of their big "non-romantic" talk, she could just bet she knew what they were doing in their child-free hotel room right now, while she sat in the heat of the midday sun, waiting so she could get an escort to the dig site.

It was hot as hell here, and even though her clothing was loose, it covered every inch of her skin, and she also had the lower half of her face covered, as she had been instructed. But the ceiling fans in the lobby were extremely weak, her clothes were already soaked with sweat, and she felt as if she was suffocating with the heat. If they weren't down here in five more minutes, she was going to march up to their room and pound on the door. And if she was interrupting what she thought she might be interrupting, that was just too bad.

And to top it all off, the man at the front desk had been regarding her curiously ever since she had come downstairs to wait for them. She was dressed properly, and she wasn't doing anything, only sitting here. Surely she was allowed to just sit here quietly, wasn't she?

Finally, Frank and Jody emerged from the elevator. "Let's go," Frank said, gesturing to her. Gail glared at him. But they had been advised when they got here that that was the way older male relatives mainly talked to their single female siblings here, and Frank said he was only playing a part, too. The fact that he was enjoying it a little too much had not been totally unexpected, but it would have to be filed, and dealt with at a later date. They were stuck here right now, and she could see that Tommy hadn't been kidding. Women were definitely second-class citizens here, and as everyone knew, it was a man's, man's, man's world. They'd only been here for half a day, and that fact was already readily apparent to her.

Gail glanced at the man who'd been staring at her. He seemed mollified, now that Frank had come. Was she just being paranoid? It was hard to tell. But she noticed that Tommy had booked her, and Frank and Jody into the hotel that was furthest from the dig site. It was nowhere near Sam and Dean's hotel, which was also where Bobby and the Musketeers were staying. And, Lord only knew where Cas's palace was. They had deliberately not told her, and he wouldn't even be arriving until this evening. Maybe she could see the coverage on TV, or something. But Frank had agreed to take her to the Valley of Kings this afternoon just so they could get the lay of the land, and to give them something to do in the meantime. Hopefully, she'd see the guys there, and have a chance to talk to them for a minute. They had just gotten here, but already she felt isolated, out of the loop. She knew that nothing could actually be accomplished until they were able to get into the newly discovered chambers, and they wouldn't be able to do that until Cas arrived. Ostensibly, when he got to the dig site, the officials would open the chambers in his presence, under the assumption that his ancestors' remains were interred there. Then he would ask Sam, Dean and Gail to accompany him into the chambers, purportedly to report on what was found there for the North American media. At least, that was the plan, anyway. But Gail had been getting restless already, and she thought they should check out the site in advance, just to see what it looked like.

They walked outside, and Frank hailed a cab. Jody and Gail got in the back, and Frank sat in the front beside the driver. "Do you have A/C?" Frank asked the man.

The cabbie looked at him and smiled. "A/C. Air conditioning, yes?" he said, and when Frank nodded, the driver turned it on. Gail sat back, breathing a sigh of relief. Good one, Frank.

Then they were at the dig site, and it was just as amazing as the pictures that Tommy had shown them. Gail forgot the heat for a moment as she looked all around, awestruck.

"Wow," she said softly.

"I agree," Sam said from behind her.

Gail wheeled around to see him and Dean standing there. She almost ran to them to give them big hugs, then thought better of it, restraining herself.

"It's weird seeing you with your face covered up like that," Dean said to her.

"It's weird seeing you without any flannel on," she retorted.

"Touche," Sam said, grinning.

"Have you seen the tomb?" Gail asked them.

"We were just about to go there now," Sam told her. "Why don't you come with?"

Gail, Frank and Jody accompanied Sam and Dean into the main tomb area, and she breathed a sigh of relief. It was good to get out of the heat of the sun for a minute. They all milled around with the other tourists, and then they approached two guards with what looked like submachine guns, who were standing in front of a blank wall at the end of the main chamber. This must be the way to one of the new chambers.

The guards tensed as their group approached. "Yes?" one of the men said. "What do you want?"

"We're reporters from the Vancouver Herald," Gail said, showing them her press credentials. Sam and Dean and Frank followed suit. "We're here to do a story on the newly discovered chambers of the tomb."

The guards eyed her coolly. "Which of these men is your husband?" the second guard asked her.

Gail used all the self-control she possessed not to roll her eyes. "What does that have to do with anything?" she said irritably. "I'm a reporter."

"She's a reporter," the second guard repeated sarcastically to the other guard.

"Yeah, she is, and I'm her brother," Frank said angrily. "She's a single woman, but you guys seem to think that means she's a non-person, here. So I came to escort her around, so everybody would be happy. But she's here to do a job, not to be condescended to." Now he was really mad. It was one thing for him to tease his sister about it, or to have a little fun at her expense. But these guys were just being douchebags.

"Perhaps it is you who is the woman," one of the guards quipped.

"Do you wanna put that gun down and go outside with me? Then we'll see which one of us is the woman," Frank shot back.

Gail couldn't believe it. They's only been here a couple of minutes, and Frank was pissing off guys with automatic weapons. But she didn't want to berate him in front of them, because that would probably make things even worse. "I need some air," Gail told Jody quietly, and they walked outside.

"I know, I know," Jody said when they stepped out of the tomb. "I'll talk to him."

"Please do," Gail said to her. "I appreciate him trying to stick up for me, but Cas isn't even here yet, and Frank's already pissing off the guys he's supposed to sweet-talk into letting us reporters in with him, when the chambers are opened."

Frank, Sam and Dean came out of the tomb. "Sorry, Gail," Frank said quietly. "I just lost it. My big brother instincts kicked in, I guess. I was really hoping that Tommy was exaggerating about the way things were here."

"Yeah, it's a good thing Cas wasn't here to hear them talk to you like that," Dean piped up. "They'd both be piles of dust right now."

Gail smiled faintly. "I'm not so sure about that, Dean. Remember, he's coming here as one of them. The next time I see him, he might be talking to me like that, too."

They were all silent for a moment. "Let's just go back to the hotel, Frank," Jody said. "There's nothing we can do until tomorrow, anyway."

Cas's plane landed that evening, and he was very glad to be back on the ground. Plane travel would never be his favourite thing, and it had been a long, lonely flight. He had spent the time brushing up on his Arabic, researching the customs of the region, and settling into his character. By the time his plane descended, he had become the Sheikh.

He sat in his seat, waiting for the flight attendant to open the door. "Sheikh," the man said, bowing respectfully.

Cas got up from his seat then, leaving his Western clothes behind, on the floor. Servants would pick them up later. He now had the proper Egyptian garb on.

He emerged from the plane and stood on the top step. There was a man standing just below the stairs, looking up at him.

"Sheikh?" the man said, bowing as Cas descended the steps.

"You may rise," Cas said.

The man rose and said, "I am your manservant, Ibrahim. Welcome home, Sir."

Cas considered thanking him, but he thought it might be inappropriate for his character to do so, so he merely nodded. "It has been a long flight," he told the man. "We will go to the palace now and visit the dig site in the morning."

"Very good, Sir," Ibrahim said. "Your car is waiting for you."

Cas followed him down the tarmac, and along the way, Tommy's reporter friends approached the men. The TV cameras were on him.

"How does it feel to be home?" one man asked Cas.

"Do you think one of the newly discovered chambers might contain Queen Nefertiti's remains?" the other reporter asked.

Cas had thought about this moment. He knew that Tommy had arranged for these men to be here to help legitimize his fake identity in the court of public opinion, but they had never actually discussed how he should answer the questions. He decided to answer off-the-cuff, as he thought his character might.

"I have been away for too long," Cas told them. "But now that there is a very real chance that my ancestors might be in those chambers, I had to come here, to find out."

"You are the last surviving member of the royal family, though, aren't you?" one of the reporters asked him.

Cas smiled arrogantly. "I have been provided with fourteen wives," he told the man. "That status will soon change."

Ibrahim opened the back door of the limousine, and Cas got in. Ibrahim started to enter the car after him, and Cas looked imperiously at him. "What are you doing?"

Ibrahim hesitated, then backed out. "I beg your pardon, Sheikh," he said, bowing again. Then he closed the door and got in the front of the car, sitting beside the chauffeur.

Cas displayed no change in his facial expression, but he relaxed a bit inwardly once the car pulled out of the airport. So far, so good. But there had been TV cameras on him as the reporters had been asking their questions, and he really hoped that Gail had not been watching.

But she had been, of course. She'd been excited to see him get off the plane, and Gail smiled when she saw him in the traditional robes. It had only been a day, but he had grown almost a full beard, already. Plus, he looked darker-skinned. How the heck had he done that?

She had pretty much expected him to act the way he had acted. They'd gone over it at home; if he hoped to pass himself off as a member of the royal family, he had to speak in an arrogant, entitled tone. That was just the way that things were done. And she reminded herself of that fact again, when she'd heard him say what he had said about his supposed plans to impregnate his wives with royal heirs.

She clicked off the TV and threw the remote on the bed. This was exactly what she'd been prepared for, but it still hadn't been pleasant to watch. Still, at least he was here now, and now the mission could begin. Soonest begun, soonest done.

They arrived at the palace, and Ibrahim opened the back door of the limousine for Cas to emerge.

"I hope this is suitable, Sheikh," he said, bowing and gesturing towards the palace.

Cas looked around. It was magnificent. A huge, open-air structure with many rooms, by the looks of it.

"It will do," Cas said evenly. "Now, take me to my room. I wish to rest."

"Certainly, Sir," Ibrahim said. "Follow me."

Once they got there, Ibrahim said, "Go ahead, Sheikh. I will return in a moment, to assist you. Are you in need of any refreshments?"

Cas thought about that. It would probably seem strange if he didn't ask for something. He was supposed to be a human.

"Tea," he said. "And maybe some biscuits."

"Right away, Sheikh," Ibrahim said. He retreated into the hallway, closing the door behind him. Once he was far enough away from the room, he took the cell phone out of his pocket. "He's in place," he said into the phone.

"Good. Proceed," said the man at the other end.

Ibrahim went into the seraglio. He opened the door, hoping to get a glimpse of some skin, but of course, the women were all fully dressed. "The Sheikh is here," he told them. "He requires tea and biscuits, and he is tired after his long journey. He has suggested that he will be wanting an heir as soon as possible. So it would probably be a good idea for all of you to get your sweet little asses over there and take care of him. The first one to have his son, wins."

The women exchanged glances. It was a little strange for the manservant to be speaking this way. He had talked to them before, preparing them for their husband's arrival, and even though his manner had been condescending, he had never been so overtly rude before. But perhaps he was under some pressure too, and if the Sheikh had been rude to him, maybe he was just taking it out on them. They rose and followed Ibrahim to the kitchen.

He pointed to four of the women. "Prepare the tea and snacks," he instructed them. "The rest of you, come with me."

Ibrahim led them to Cas's bedroom. "Go in there, and make him comfortable," he told the women. "I'll be back in a moment."

Cas was sitting in a chair with his feet up on an ottoman, and his eyes were closed. He had been enjoying a moment of serenity, and quiet reflection. When he heard the door open, he said, "Put the refreshments on the table."

The women exchanged glances. The Sheikh was much younger, and a lot more handsome, than they had expected him to be. This might not be so bad, after all.

One woman moved forward and untied his shoes, easing them off his feet. He smiled in relief. That did feel better. He'd meant to do that himself; he'd just wanted a moment. "I have a headache," he blurted out. One of the women moved behind him immediately, and she began to massage his temples.

Cas smiled again. These manservants really knew what they were doing. He wasn't exactly comfortable with being waited on in this manner, but he had to admit, Ibrahim was helping him to relax.

Then he felt his cloth belt being undone. Cas had been advised that the manservants here were trained to undress their bosses in preparation for bed, and they would only stop when advised to do so. And he would tell Ibrahim to stop, in just a moment. But his headache was receding now, and Cas decided to give it another minute.

Suddenly, Cas's eyes snapped open. How could Ibrahim be massaging his temples and undoing his robes at the same time?

Oh, God. There were women all around him. As soon as his eyes had opened, they bowed down to him, and then they began to minister to him. Soft fingers were touching his skin, and loosening his clothes, and the one who had been massaging his temples said, "I am an expert masseuse, Sheikh. If you would care to lay down, I can relieve any tensions you may have."

Oh, no, she couldn't. Cas leaped up from the chair and strode over to the door of his room. He flung it open, only to discover more women, bearing trays of tea and snacks. He retreated, and they entered the room. Ibrahim trailed behind them.

"What's going on?" Cas asked him sharply.

"What do you mean, Sheikh?" Ibrahim asked him, puzzled. "Your wives are here to see to your needs."

"I did not ask you to send them here!" Cas barked.

"I know, Sir, but it is my job to anticipate your needs, and it is their job to fulfill them," Ibrahim said blithely. The Demon inside him was fighting to keep a straight face now. "If any one of these women are unsuitable to you for any reason, we can just have her replaced. This one seems a little chunky," he said, squeezing one girl's thigh. "And this one might be a bit ugly," he said, pointing to another. "Though with that veil on, it's not like you'd really notice."

Cas looked at him incredulously. "Are you always this insolent?" he asked the manservant. "Perhaps it is you who needs to be replaced. I could ring for security right now, and have you taken away and beheaded for speaking to me like that."

Ibrahim snapped his fingers, and the women in the room all froze in place. "My goodness, Castiel, when you commit to a part, you really commit," he said. He strode to the door and opened it. Cas saw him open his mouth and belch out the red smoke, and an instant later, Crowley walked back in.

"If you could have seen the look on your face," Crowley smirked. "Running to escape all these lovely young women, only to find even more lovely young women at your door. What a terrifying situation you find yourself in."

"Why are you here, Crowley?" Cas said angrily.

"I have so few opportunities to have a truly good time these days," Crowley said, shrugging. "I had one of my minions inhabit your manservant, and then when he informed me you were here, like this, I just couldn't resist." He took his cell phone out of his pocket and showed Cas the picture he'd taken. "Look at that. Not here 10 minutes, and you're already halfway to having Gail take that ring off and fling it right back in your face."

Cas paled, but he was also shaking with anger. He reached under his robes and withdrew the ceremonial sword he had hidden there from its scabbard. "That beheading I spoke about earlier could happen right now," he told Crowley.

"Relax, Sheikh, I was only having a laugh," Crowley said airily. He touched the screen on his cell phone. "See? All gone. I'll tell you what, Castiel. I'll do you a favour, even. I'll take your place with these ladies. I'm willing to make this sacrifice for you because you're my brother. Just tell them that I'm your long-lost cousin, in town from merry old England, and you want them to show me some good old-fashioned family hospitality. Then you can wink away and see your fiancee for a few minutes, and everybody's happy."

Cas regarded him coolly. "All right," he said, surprising Crowley. "All right?" the King echoed. Cas nodded. "Yes. All right."

Crowley snapped his fingers again, and the women were reanimated. Castiel instructed them to show his cousin some hospitality, and the women of the harem nodded agreeably. Crowley couldn't believe his good fortune.

Cas moved to the door, and then he stopped suddenly and turned back around. "Oh, but there is one thing," he said to the women. "You are my wives, and as such, I will require each and every one of you to stay faithful to me. So if he tries to remove any of your clothing, or asks any of you to remove any of his, you will immediately ring this bell." He indicated a golden bell that was sitting in a niche by the door. Presumably, it was there for him to summon servants to his room. "Then, both my cousin and whichever of you sinned with him will be put to death immediately." He smiled at Crowley. "I'll be back in a few minutes. Enjoy your tea, and companionship. And that is ALL you will be enjoying in my home."

Crowley raised an eyebrow. "Fair enough, Sheikh," he acknowledged. He hadn't really expected Castiel to be his pimp, and he had never actually intended to show the photograph to Gail. Still, now Castiel could steal away to see her for a while, and Crowley could enjoy the attentions of fourteen sweet young women for that same period of time. He'd chalk that up as a win.

Gail was sitting outside on the terrace of her hotel room, enjoying the night air. She had to admit that they had been right; once the sun had set, the temperature got cooler. It was very pleasant out here. In fact, she might go inside in a moment and see if she could find a wrap to put on.

Suddenly, Cas appeared on the terrace. She gasped, and he put a finger to his lips. Gail understood. All the rooms in the hotel were open-air, and she'd better not be heard talking to a man in her room at night.

She went to him, and he kissed her on the mouth. He waved his hand and conjured a single rose, which he handed to her.

"I love you," he mouthed, and she did the same. Then he kissed her again, and then he was gone.

She sat there clutching her rose for a while, and then, when the mosquitoes came, Gail retreated inside, and turned off all the lights. She zipped the netting closed around the bed and laid down with her rose, smiling.

Cas returned to the palace and walked around the grounds for a few minutes, then he returned to his room.

"All right, that's enough," Cas said sharply, but to his surprise, the scene he found was quite civilized. Crowley was merely drinking tea and conversing politely with the women, all of whom were keeping a respectful distance from him.

"Your wives are delightful, Sheikh," Crowley said, smiling. He bowed to the women. "Thank you for your fine hospitality, ladies."

"Leave us," Cas instructed them, and they all filed quietly out of the room.

"I was a perfect gentleman, Castiel," Crowley assured him. "They really are very sweet, cultured young ladies. Of course, we'd better not tell Gail that. She'll just come running in here, wanting to emancipate them all. How is she, by the way? Why was your visit so short?"

Cas sighed. "We can't even speak to each other. If anyone even hears a man's voice in her room at night, she could be in great peril."

Crowley smirked. Yes, Castiel would need to TALK to her, wouldn't he? Then, it was probably just as well. If he was sincere about his desire to keep celibate before the wedding, it was probably best not to seek out temptation.

"I'll restore your manservant, and I'll modify his memory," Crowley told his Brother. "Good luck at the dig site tomorrow." Then he snapped himself out of the room.

Cas showered and dressed in the morning, and he was coming down the stairs just as Ibrahim was coming up.

"Sheikh?" Ibrahim asked him nervously. "Is everything all right?"

"Yes, it's fine," Cas replied. "Why?"

"When I did not hear the bell, I thought you might require more rest," the manservant said. "But the hour is getting later, and I was sure you would be anxious to get to the dig site."

"I am," Cas said. "That's why I'm dressed and ready to go."

"You dressed yourself?" Ibrahim said, surprised.

Cas cursed himself. Was he not supposed to have done that? But, this was getting ridiculous. "Yes," he said sharply. "We may not agree with much of Western culture and philosophy, but one thing I learned in the United States was self-sufficiency. I am not a baby, I am a man. I can bathe myself, and I can dress myself. Now, bring the car around."

Ibrahim bowed, and retreated down the stairs. Truthfully, he was impressed by what the Sheikh had said. He knew his role as a servant to a Royal, but Ibrahim had always found it a little bit absurd that grown men seemed to feel the need to be bathed and dressed by their valets, as if they were helpless little children. He himself had always thought that it was undignified to behave in that manner, but he would never dare to say so, of course. But this Sheikh seemed like he had a pretty good handle on these things. Ibrahim hoped that he would stay in Egypt for a while, at least long enough to father some sons. It would be a shame if the royal bloodline were to end with this man. Hopefully, they would discover some royal remains in the chambers that were waiting to be opened. Ibrahim was sure that would be enough to keep the Sheikh from going back to America.

Cas was sitting in the back of the limousine looking out at the desert scenery rushing by when he got the call from Bobby on Angel Radio.

"Saw you on the news last night," Bobby told him.

"Really? How did I come across?" Cas asked him, curious.

"Like a dick," Bobby said bluntly. "Like an entitled rich guy."

Cas frowned. "Well, then, I guess I did a good job."

"You did," Bobby confirmed. "I thought I'd catch you, before you get busy creating all those little royal heirs. Can you come to the Museum of Egyptology? I've made the acquaintance of the head librarian here, and they have information on those bricks you were talking about, the ones with the phrases from the Book of the Dead. I thought maybe you'd wanna see that stuff before you go to the dig site."

Cas was impressed. That was quite astute of Bobby. He leaned over and picked up the car phone. It rang through to the driver. Cas told him to go to the Museum, instead.

"I'll be here for a few more minutes, but I don't think there's anything further that I can do," Bobby told Cas. "I'll see you around."

Cas thanked him, and he sat back as he felt the car turn around. He had been wanting to examine the language on the bricks; maybe his persona as the Sheikh would allow him to gain access to the bricks themselves.

Bobby was pleased with himself. He'd been wondering what his own role could be in this whole operation. Maybe he shouldn't have just pushed his way in on this caper, but he'd been starting to feel a little irrelevant. He had had a fit of pique and resigned as God, but no one knew it except for Cas and Gail. Therefore, everyone else still looked to him for leadership and to make the decisions, so Bobby had figured it was about time for him to step up and do something for a change.

He closed the book he'd been perusing and looked around for the librarian. She had been very helpful to him, and he wanted to say goodbye to her before he left the place.

Jasmina saw Bobby closing the book, and she rushed out to talk to him. It looked like he was getting ready to leave, but she didn't want him to go yet. She'd pretty much given up on her original plan now, but still, she wanted to give it one more try.

When Bobby had walked into the museum this morning, and he'd been alone, she couldn't believe her good fortune. She and Lucifer had just arrived last night, and Rowena hadn't even gotten her bearings yet. Yet here was her Bobby, coming to her.

Bobby had made a huge mistake. If he had not insisted on bringing the Musketeers with him, Lucifer would never have known where they were. But their arrival in Luxor had been one loud, strident alarm to him, and now he was really suspicious. This could only be about the Tablets. One of them had to be in the Valley of Kings, then. But just as this particular Tablet was obviously shielded to the Angels, and that was why they'd had to bring the humans along, it would be uber-shielded from Lucifer. As a backup plan, it was pretty brilliant. He'd known of the Tablets, but he'd had no idea where any of them were. And even if he did, he could not even approach the places in which they were secreted. So he had popped Rowena over to the museum, and he had helped her to possess Jasmina, but then he'd had to grab Jasmina's meat suit and get the hell out of there.

Now Rowena was in the young, supple body of Jasmina, head librarian and curator of the Museum of Egyptology, and the Governor of Luxor's daughter. She had been wondering how she could lure the men there to see her. She'd poked around the place, and it had a lot of artifacts, and musty old books she was sure would be of great interest to them. Once morning came, she had been sitting at the front desk, contemplating using another spell, when Bobby had walked right in.

Rowena had risen to her feet and smiled as he approached her. He introduced himself, and she extended her hand for him to take, doing the same. Bobby took her hand, and she felt the spark. He was the one she wanted; he always had been. She not only wanted him now because he was God, but because he was still her Bobby. This wouldn't be a job at all, it would be a pleasure.

He asked her about the bricks, and the Book of the Dead, and she told him to have a seat. She brought him a few books to look at, making sure to lean close as she put the books on the table. A stray lock of hair had fallen out of the bun she wore, and it tickled his cheek. He glanced at her and noticed with alarm that he could see right down her blouse.

Rowena could see him looking, and she smiled. "Is there anything else I can do for you, Bobby?" she said softly. She took his hand and put it on her breast. "Anything at all?"

Bobby looked at her, astonished. "No. Nothing," he said, jerking his hand away as if her skin was red-hot. What the hell was wrong with this woman? She was young enough to be his daughter. And he was a realist; he may have a beard, something that they seemed to like over here, but he sure as hell wasn't anyone's idea of handsome. Bobby knew from the research he had done last night that Jasmina was the Governor's daughter, and though her face wasn't covered and she was dressed in a modern style, maybe her dad had her under his thumb. Maybe she saw Bobby as a possible way for her to rebel against her father. Or maybe she was just horny, and Bobby was the first man who had walked in here today. Maybe he was overthinking everything, and maybe he was just a chauvinist jerk.

But in any event, he and Patricia seemed to have an understanding now, and Jasmina was way too young for him, anyway. So he had been polite yet firm, and it seemed like the librarian had gotten the message.

Bobby had smiled to himself as she retreated, though. A small part of him couldn't help but feel flattered, whatever her motivation had been. But when Rowena went into the back area to regroup, she was angry. She should have aged the vessel she was in, as soon as she'd seen him. Well, it was too late now. Fine, then. She had a whole host of men to pick from.

So, when she came back out and Bobby rose to leave, Jasmina merely thanked him for stopping by. "You said you were here with some other Americans, did you not?" she asked him softly.

"Yes," Bobby confirmed, nodding. "But I think what I've seen here will be of particular interest to the man I just called. Have you heard that there is a member of the royal family here in town to find out if there are any of his ancestors buried in the newly discovered chambers of the tomb?"

"Yes, of course," Rowena said automatically. She actually didn't know anything about it, but she didn't think it was a good idea for a woman with her job title and supposed heritage to admit that. "But I have to say, I have no idea what he looks like. Are you saying that that is the man you called?"

Bobby nodded. "He said he would be very interested in seeing the bricks for himself, so he's coming by, shortly."

Oh. Rowena wondered if she was supposed to care. But this guy was a member of the royal family, and she had always been attracted to wealth and status. She may or may not be here to help Lucifer, but Rowena's wants and needs would always come first.

"Hey, they had a quick news item about him on TV last night," Bobby said. "Maybe it's on YouTube."

They walked to the front desk together, and she turned her computer around for Bobby to do the search. When he found the clip, he turned the screen back to her.

Castiel?! Rowena couldn't believe it. It took all of her self-control not to break into a wide smile. This could be a very interesting way to combine business with pleasure. She had been on the fence about him for centuries, both attracted to and repelled by him at the same time. Maybe someone was trying to tell her something. He was damn sexy in the news clip, all masculine and masterful. If she were looking to seduce him, there would never be a better opportunity. He had clearly left the Angel Castiel behind in America, and the Angel Gail had finally been pried away from his side.

"I will provide him with anything he might need," Jasmina told Bobby quietly.

He looked at her speculatively. Considering what she had pulled with Bobby earlier, should he really be sending Cas to her? Then Bobby decided he was being ridiculous. Cas would have his manservant with him, and he would also be impervious to Jasmina's charms. If she tried anything like that with Cas, he could probably threaten to have her beheaded, or something.

So Bobby left, and when Cas arrived about half an hour later, Rowena had taken her hair out of the bun, put a little perfume on, and undone another button on her blouse.

"Bobby told me you were coming, Sheikh," Rowena said demurely. "Please have a seat, and I will bring you a couple of books on the subject that come highly recommended." He had been hoping to see the bricks themselves, but before he could tell her that, she disappeared into the back. So Cas sat at the library table and waited.

When she returned, she tried the same thing with Cas as she had with Bobby, minus the fondling. She saw him give her cleavage the quickest of glances, and then he sat back in his chair, leaning away from her.

"You seem to have missed a button or two on your blouse," he told her, adding, "I'm surprised your father would allow you to dress like that in public. Surely, you are not married?"

"No, I am not married, if that is any of your business," Rowena said softly. "And what my father does not know will not hurt him."

"Mind your tongue, woman," Ibrahim said sharply. He had been standing behind Cas this whole time, as if guarding him from her. "You are speaking to a member of the royal family."

Rowena sighed inwardly. She was never going to get anywhere with this guy hanging around them.

"I wish to see the bricks themselves," Cas said. "Are they on display here?"

"No," Rowena told him. "They are much too valuable to be exposed to the public."

"But they are on the premises, are they not?" he persisted.

"Yes," she confirmed. Then she leaned down again, and this time he did not move away. "If you will come back later, after the museum closes, I'll see what I can arrange." She glanced up at his manservant. "You'll have to come alone, though," she said into his ear.

"Agreed," Cas said quietly. Then he got to his feet. "I may come back another day, then, when you have learned better manners," he said loudly, for the benefit of his manservant. Then he swept out of the building, Ibrahim at his heels.

Bobby'd called Sam and Dean when he got back to their hotel, and they arranged to meet in the restaurant so the boys could have coffee and breakfast. He told them where he'd been, and about the fact that he'd set it up so Cas could get the information he'd wanted before he got to the dig site today. "You guys take your time. I'm gonna go get Chuck, Ethan and Kevin, and we'll go to the dig site. I'll call Frank too, and have him bring Jody and Gail. But you can all take your time about getting there. Cas'll have to have a bit of research time at the museum."

Dean shrugged, taking a gulp of coffee. He wasn't too wild about too much of the food here, but the coffee was really strong, and he did like that.

Sam had been pleased to see that they had a large selection of fruit here. It helped to hydrate you. It was going to be another really hot day today. "After breakfast, I'll get some more water bottles to take out there," he told Bobby.

"Good idea," Bobby said, clapping him on the shoulder. "Maybe I'll get the Musketeers to bring some, too. It's gonna be a scorcher."

It certainly was, Gail thought miserably. Frank and Jody had just finished having breakfast, and Gail had been sitting there watching them, with her face covered the entire time, and she was sweating already. At least Jody got to remove the veil to eat and drink. Since Gail did neither, she had no such excuse.

"Maybe we'll try not to piss off the guys with the semi-automatic weapons today, just for something new and different," Jody said to Frank dryly.

Frank said nothing, because Jody was right. He needed to try to keep his temper in check. But it was just so damn hot. Gail must be just hating this. He looked at his sister with sympathy. "Hey, at least you'll get to see Cas today," he said, trying to cheer her.

"Yeah, and we all have to pretend like we don't even know him," Gail groused. "I'm probably not even allowed to look directly at him."

Frank sighed. "Come on, let's go," he said, throwing his napkin down on the table. "Bobby said to take our time getting there. What do you say we go to the marketplace first? Jody and I need to get some kind of souvenir for Robbie."

"We should probably get Barry and Tommy something too, to thank them for looking after him for us," Jody added.

Gail rose listlessly. Now she was supposed to go traipsing around an open-air market in this heat. Great.

Frank looked at her again. "You ladies wait for me at the front desk. I need the washroom for a minute."

Once they were gone, Frank took out his cell phone and called Bobby, telling him where they were going.

Bobby called Cas on Angel Radio. "Frank tells me that Gail is feeling really down," he told his friend. "How'd it go at the Museum?"

Cas didn't tell him about how forward Jasmina had been, but he did tell Bobby that he would not be able to see the bricks until after the museum closed. Therefore, he was on his way to the dig site now.

Bobby said, "Maybe make a quick pit stop at the marketplace, if you can. It'll probably cheer Gail up just to be able to see you for a minute."

Cas smiled. It would cheer him up, too, even though they wouldn't be able to speak to or even acknowledge each other. But now, he had an idea about that.

He thanked Bobby and picked up the phone, telling the driver that he wanted to stop by the marketplace first, on the way to the dig site. The chauffeur and Ibrahim exchanged curious glances.

"May I ask why, Sheikh?" Ibrahim asked him over the speaker.

"Is that really any of your business?" Cas asked him bluntly.

"Don't misunderstand me, Sir, I was merely wondering if I could be of any assistance to you," Ibrahim said mildly. His boss was certainly touchy, sometimes. Frankly, Ibrahim had wondered if this man was a legitimate heir, and if he was going to be an embarrassment to the proud legacy of the royal family. He had been studying in the United States for a number of years, and Ibrahim had not known what to expect, as a result. But when the Sheikh had emerged from the airplane dressed in their traditional garb, and speaking so imperiously, Ibrahim had known that he was the genuine article. Still, there were obviously a few customs of which the Sheikh was unaware.

Cas felt the need to fill the silence. Perhaps he had gone a bit too far. "I wish to look at some of the wares," he told Ibrahim. "I thought I might like a traditional, quality rug, for my room."

"Oh," Ibrahim said. "Of course, Sir."

Cas hung up the phone and sat back, closing his eyes. Then he opened them again and rooted around in the back of the limousine. It was actually like a little apartment back here. A TV, a bar, snacks, a cupboard with a cell phone, and a hand-held tablet computer. Then he found what he had been looking for. A pad of paper and a pen. He scribbled down a note, which he folded and put in the inside pocket of his robes.

A short while later, the car stopped. Were they there already? He had no idea.

The back door opened, and three of his wives entered. They sat in the seat opposite him, looking at him demurely. Then Ibrahim closed the door, and a moment later, the car started to move again.

"What are you doing here?" Cas asked the women.

"Begging your pardon, Sheikh," one of them said. "Ibrahim let us know that you were interested in purchasing some items for the palace. He thought that perhaps we could help you to shop for them. And then, you would give us whatever you decide to buy and we will transport it back home for you, so you can move on to the dig site unencumbered."

"He mentioned you may want a rug for your room," one of the other girls said. "I received a degree in interior design from Luxor University, and if you'll let me, I'll help you pick out one that is both tasteful and goes with the decor."

"Comfort is key," the third woman said. The lower half of her face was covered, of course, but he could swear he heard a smile in her voice. "Many of our rugs are beautiful, but the materials can sometimes be very prickly." She was currently imagining the Sheikh beckoning to her and laying her down on the rug. He was handsome and sexy, and she'd love to be the first one to bear his son.

This was not going to be good, Cas thought. But he was stuck now. Hopefully, Gail would understand.

Gail was wandering aimlessly from table to table in the marketplace. She had zero interest in shopping, and it felt like it was about a thousand degrees out now.

Out of the corner of her eye, Gail saw some movement. She looked up to see the crowds of people moving like a wave. A limousine was driving into the far end of the marketplace, and the people were moving to either side of it to get out of the way.

The car drove forward a bit more and then stopped, and a white-robed man got out of the front of the car and opened the back door. Three women got out, and then Cas stepped out after them.

Gail's heart stopped for a moment. He looked so different. He had even more of a beard today than he'd had last night, and he was looking around as if he owned the marketplace, and everything in it. He said something to the women, and they fanned out in different directions. Then he lifted his eyes, and they made eye contact with each other.

Cas's knees felt weak. Her face hadn't been covered last night, of course, but it was now, and he could recognize those eyes from all the way across the marketplace. They were the only eyes he was interested in looking into.

It was a movie cliche come to life. The other people in the marketplace all seemed to disappear as they looked at each other. Cas slowly started to move in her direction, with Ibrahim trailing behind. Incredibly enough, she was standing at a table where rugs were displayed. He kept staring at her eyes. They became more and more beautiful to him the closer he got. And she was staring at him, too. Gail realized she probably shouldn't be gazing at him so blatantly, but she just couldn't seem to help herself.

Cas had reached the table where she was standing now, and Gail made herself look the other way. She'd been feeling the material of the rugs absently, several layers down, and suddenly, she felt Cas's hand touch hers there. She could feel the heat from his body as it was standing next to hers, but she figured she'd better not look at him. Then, one of Cas's fingers stroked her knuckle lightly, and it was so sexy that Gail felt like she was going to pass out. That was the sexiest thing she had ever felt, that little caress. Then he pressed the piece of paper into her hand, then he gave her knuckle one more little stroke, and then he was gone.

But Gail heard Ibrahim talking to Cas as he retreated. "Why are you looking at that woman?" the manservant was saying harshly. "She is an American whore. It is obvious. They are only good for one thing. You can lay with one or more of your wives tonight. They have been trained in our ways, and they can fulfill all of your needs, whatever those may be."

"You are right," Cas said, hating himself. "I forgot myself, for a moment." Then the men walked away.

Gail had never felt so excited, yet so humiliated, at the same time. She clenched her fist, crushing the piece of paper into a ball. God, she hated it here, for a multitude of reasons.

"I need to go to the washroom," she said to Jody and Frank.

Jody raised her eyebrows, but she said, "I think I saw a Port-A-Pottie a few stalls over that way."

Gail rolled her eyes. Of course it would be a portable washroom. Thank God she didn't actually have the need to go. But she needed to get somewhere private to read his note, before the sweat on her palm made the writing unintelligible. Then she could decide if she should just throw it down the commode. She probably should, anyway, just to get rid of the evidence.

Frank walked over there with Gail and Jody. He felt bad now. He thought he'd been doing something nice for his sister, but who knew that the idiot was going to show up with some of those "wives" in tow, acting like such a dickface?

Gail entered the Port-A-Pottie and unfolded the note. Cas wanted her to meet him at the Museum tonight. She sighed. Well, at least he was still trying to find ways to see her. She wondered why the Museum, though. After a moment's deliberation, she tore the note into tiny little pieces and threw it down the commode. Just on general principles.

Cas walked back to the limousine and, when they were apart from the crowd, he turned to Ibrahim. "If you ever speak to me that way in public again, I will have you flayed, then dismembered," he said quietly. "'American whore' or not, I am entitled to gaze upon whomever I choose. If I wanted her, you would bring her to me, and you would keep your fat mouth shut about it."

"My deepest apologies, Sheikh," Ibrahim said, bowing low in front of Cas. "I should never have presumed to speak to you that way. I was merely concerned that Western culture might prove a little too seductive for you. I have given in to temptation, myself. But you are of royal heritage, Sir. I am concerned that your seed be used to propagate the royal Egyptian bloodline, that is all."

Cas was bemused now. This guy didn't give up, did he? He guessed he could see how important it was from Ibrahim's point of view that the royal family lineage continue. But Cas couldn't help him there, for a number of reasons.

"Let me worry about my seed," he snapped at Ibrahim. "You do as you're told. Let's get to the dig site."

Cas stood in front of the guards, astounded. "What do you mean, you will not open the chamber?" he said to them. "Don't you know who I am?"

One of the guards swallowed, hard. If this guy was who he said he was, they were going to be in big trouble. But they had their orders.

"We know who you SAY you are," the guard said evenly. "But I don't see any proof."

"I do not have to prove myself to the likes of you," Cas said, raising his voice. He was starting to feel a little nervous now. This had been unexpected.

The guards took their weapons off their shoulders. "Be that as it may, we have our orders," one of the guards said.

Cas regarded them curiously. Had they actually been instructed to shoot him if he tried to enter? This was unbelievable. How on earth was he going to prove he was who he said he was, especially since he wasn't actually who he said he was?

"You will regret this," he said in a clipped voice. He turned his back on them and swept across the tomb. Gail and the men were just descending the steps as Cas and Ibrahim got there, and Cas moved to the side to let them pass.

Ibrahim was very angry now, on his master's behalf. Those men had treated the Sheikh with such disrespect. It had made the manservant's blood boil. And now here were these Americans, standing in the Sheikh's way.

"Move aside," he barked, and he pushed Gail. She was surprised, and she tripped over her skirt and fell to the tomb floor.

"Ow," she said mildly, and she looked at Cas automatically. He stood there for a moment, paralyzed with indecision. What should he do in this situation? Everyone's eyes were on him now. How could he just let this stand? But, if he came to her aid, would he be undermining everything they'd worked so hard to create? Those guards apparently already had their doubts as to his identity.

"You Americans have no respect," Ibrahim said in a harsh voice. "You think that yours is the right way, and it is the only way. This is a member of the royal family. YOU will stand aside for HIM."

Cas's friends were starting to glare at him now. Role-playing was one thing, but this was too much. Wasn't he going to stand up to this guy?

Cas moved swiftly over to Gail and knelt before her, extending his hand. "I apologize on behalf of my servant," he said to her. "I will remind him that Americans do not know of our ways. Just because I am of royal blood does not mean that I am a bully, or an animal."

Gail put her hand in his, and he helped her to her feet. "Are you all right?" Cas asked her softly.

"Yes, Sheikh," she said, bowing her head. "Thank you for your assistance." She let go of his hand, keeping her head low.

"You see, Ibrahim?" Cas said to his manservant. "Proper respect is given, if proper respect is deserved." He looked at his friends. "I apologize to you all. He will be whipped tonight for his actions against the woman."

Then Cas swept up the stairs, with Ibrahim following closely behind.

Wow, Gail thought. Just...wow. Dean started to say something, but she shook her head vigorously. They'd better not talk about it right now. There were too many people around, and the guards were still looking their way.

She looked at Frank. "Please, just take me home."

Rowena had changed into a sexy gown in preparation for Castiel's return to the museum. She locked the doors fifteen minutes early, turned down the lighting on all the lamps, and threw one of her special scarves over one of the lamps on the library table. She had the bricks he'd wanted to see in the back room behind the bookshelves there. Rowena didn't honestly think she was going to be able to seduce Castiel any more than she'd been able to seduce Bobby earlier today, but that didn't mean that she wasn't willing to give it a go, anyway, just to see what happened.

She'd thought some more about Bobby's rejection of her, and Rowena had decided that Bobby had merely been an Angel for too long now, and he had his position as God to think about, of course. She should have figured that her half-assed attempt at seduction would have failed. She had not even given it a really good try.

She might try a little harder with Castiel. Neither he nor Bobby were very likely candidates to turn to Lucifer's side, of course, but there was no rule that said that Rowena couldn't get a little satisfaction along the way to corrupting one of them, was there?

There was a light tap at the front doors, and Rowena opened them to admit Castiel. "Sheikh," she said, bowing her head. Then she re-locked the door behind him. He had come alone.

"Is there anyone else here?" Cas asked Jasmina. He had been hoping that Gail might be here already. But Jasmina shook her head, and Cas's heart sank. He hoped that incident with Ibrahim hadn't made her so angry that she'd decided to stay away. His showing up at the marketplace with those women in tow could not have pleased her, either. He had warned Gail that he'd be playing a role, but Cas had had no idea how zealous Ibrahim was going to be, either. When they had gotten back to the palace, Cas had called his head of security on the house phone and had Ibrahim taken away to be whipped, as he had promised. He had deliberated about this all the way back to the palace but had ultimately decided that he had little choice. Ibrahim had pushed and bullied Gail, and he had called her a whore. And he had been subtly undermining Cas's authority ever since Cas had gotten here. Cas had said that he was going to have the man whipped. He had to follow through, or his word would have no meaning, nor would his authority as the supposed Sheikh. Ibrahim had called Gail a whore. It had taken everything that Cas had not to take out his sword and kill the man, right then and there. Cas may be an Angel again now, but he had also been an Angel when Xavier had said that to Gail and look where Xavier was now. Ibrahim was skating on some very thin ice. But for the time being, Cas thought that he might still need this man, so he hoped the corporal punishment would be enough to humble him.

There was another light tap at the front doors of the museum, and Jasmina looked at Castiel. "Answer it," he ordered her, and she frowned, but moved to the door. Her eyes widened. Gail?! He had to be kidding with this.

Cas had moved up to the door behind Rowena, and he smiled when he saw that it was Gail knocking. "Let her in," he instructed the librarian. "I asked her to come. She is a scholar in the ancient language."

Oh, so THAT was why she was here, Rowena thought sarcastically. For her linguistic skills. Yes, Rowena was sure that Gail was very good with the tongue.

She sighed, unlocking the doors. Gail entered, looking curiously at Jasmina. Here was Cas, and here was yet another gorgeous young woman.

Rowena now knew that she was the one who would not be getting any satisfaction tonight, but that didn't mean that she couldn't help to sow the seeds of discord. She could see the way that Gail was looking at Castiel now, and Rowena could sense a little trouble in paradise.

"I am Jasmina, head librarian and the daughter of the Governor," she said to Gail. "And you are...?"

"I'm a reporter," Gail replied. "I'm here to cover the story of the newly discovered chambers."

"Thank you for coming," Cas said to Gail, approaching the women. "I have informed Jasmina that you are an accomplished scholar in the ancient language, and that you are here to help me translate the phrases on the bricks. If you will help me, I will allow you and your colleagues to be on the news team that receives the exclusive story once the chambers are opened to me."

"It's a deal," Gail said shortly, and she pulled out a chair and sat down at the library table. Cas's hands had itched to do that for her, just as he ached to take her hand when he sat down across from her. But they had to continue their subterfuge. Jasmina was the Governor of Luxor's daughter, and they could not afford her mentioning to her father about any sort of funny business going on between the Sheikh and the American reporter. Perhaps Cas shouldn't even have done this much. But he'd just had to see her. Maybe they could steal a moment or two of real conversation.

"The bricks are quite heavy," Jasmina told them. "I will require your assistance, Sheikh. Unless all those years in America have softened you."

"I am quite strong, I assure you," he told her.

"Pardon us," Jasmina said sweetly to Gail. "We'll be right back."

She showed Cas to the back room. He grabbed one of the bricks with both arms and hefted it. It actually was quite heavy, but he could handle it. He brought it out to the table and set it down in front of Gail. "I'll get the others," he said to her.

Jasmina came out to the library, passing Castiel along the way. She gave Gail a fake smile. "Is there anything that you require?"

"Maybe a bit more light," Gail said to her. "It seems a little dim in here, for some reason."

Rowena snatched her special scarf off the lamp on the library table. "There. That should help," she snapped irritably. The scarf had been imbued with a spell that worked as an aphrodisiac, but there was no point in leaving it there now. From everything Rowena had observed, the last thing those two needed was an aphrodisiac.

Cas had returned to the back room to get the last brick, and Rowena now followed him. As soon as he had all four bricks out there, Jasmina would be redundant, and she really didn't feel like being their third wheel.

She threw the scarf around Cas's neck and tickled his nose with it. "Are you certain you need that American woman to be here?" she asked him coyly. "I am an accomplished scholar in many areas, and I am an expert in tongues."

Cas couldn't seem to move, all of a sudden. The smell of the scarf was sweet, but cloying, and he tried to take it off his shoulders.

Jasmina put her arms around his neck, preventing him from removing it. "Do you like my scent?" she asked him softly. She leaned forward, grazing his cheek with her lips. "You can enjoy more of it, if you send the reporter away."

"Really?" Gail said from behind them. "And what would your scent be? Eau de Skank?" she said sarcastically. She tore the veil away from her face. If Jasmina's face wasn't covered, why should hers be? Gail was angry now. She looked down at the woman's hands, which appeared to be in the folds of Cas's robes. "And just what do you think you're looking for in there?" She rushed forward and pushed Jasmina away from Cas. Gail reached into Cas's robes and pulled out his Angel blade, slamming it down on the table. "Looking for this, maybe? Who are you, really?" Then she used the phrase she'd heard him say when they'd been training with Crowley, and his blade changed into the snake.

Rowena's eyes widened. What kind of magic was this, now? Gail could do magic? The serpent coiled and prepared to strike. Rowena turned around and fled.

Gail looked at Cas. "Give me one good reason I shouldn't have that snake attack you right now," she said angrily.

Now that Rowena was gone, Cas could move, and he whipped the scarf off his neck and threw it on the floor. "I can't," he said.

Gail looked at him a moment longer. "That's right. You can't," she said grumpily. But she sighed, said the Enochian phrase in reverse, and the snake changed back into Cas's blade. He grabbed it and put it back in his robes hastily.

"Gail - " he started to say, but she was shaking her head. "I'm sorry, Cas, but enough is enough. I know you're only playing a role here, but something's gotta give. I see you walking around like an arrogant male chauvinist pig, and I say, 'he's only playing a role'. But then I see you show up at the marketplace with those women, and then your servant calls me a whore, and you say nothing."

"I had him whipped," Cas blurted out. Gail looked at him incredulously. "You had him whipped? Are you even hearing yourself right now?" she said, raising her voice.

Cas was miserable. He'd known that this was going to be a problem. But he had to prepare her for the possibility that it might get even worse.

"They refused to open the chambers for me this afternoon," he told her. "That's why I came here, to see if I could glean any information from the bricks that would help convince them that I am who I say I am."

That gave Gail pause. She had never even considered the possibility that they might not believe him. "So, even after all that very convincing acting on your part, they still didn't believe you?" she said tartly. "Well, I guess you'll have to really commit to the part, then. Maybe you should actually impregnate one of your wives. Or maybe you should let sweet little Jasmina get into your robes. She was already pretty much in there when I walked in the room. Her Daddy's the Governor, isn't he? I'm sure she could use her influence with him to get the job done."

"I'll be doing neither of those things, but I may well have to invoke an ancient and terrible curse on the people of Luxor if they continue to refuse to open the chambers to me," Cas told her soberly.

"But you're not going to tell me what that is, are you?" Gail asked him dully.

"I would rather not," Cas said uncomfortably. "But know that if and when the time comes, I will protect you."

"Are you sure you'll be able to keep us all straight?" she said testily. "I mean, you have so many women in your life right now."

"That's not fair, Gail," he said to her.

"No? Well, let me ask you something, then. Were there any women in your room last night, Cas?" she asked him bluntly.

"Yes," he said, frowning. He had to answer her honestly.

"Did any of them touch you?" she persisted.

"Yes, but they were the aggressors," he replied, realizing how lame that sounded. "And nothing happened, of course."

"OK, Cas. Whatever. Assuming I believe you, then why weren't you pulling away from Jasmina when I came in the room just now?" Gail pushed.

"I don't know," Cas said quietly.

"Were you really a virgin when we first got together, Cas? Or did you just tell me that you were?"

"No, I told you that because it was the truth," Cas said. There was a bit of an edge to his voice now, too. He didn't like what she seemed to be implying.

"What really went on between you and Aurielle in Hell, Cas?" Gail asked him coolly.

"OK, that's it," Cas said. "I've had it. I have never given you any cause to be jealous. Never."

"Neither have I, but that didn't stop you from accusing me every time I turned around, when you were the Demon," she said tartly.

They stood there looking at each other for a moment, and then Cas said, "Fine. Fair enough. You're right, I made enough accusations at the time. If I have to prove my fidelity to you now, I will gladly do so. But we have to set a wedding date."

Gail gave her head a quick shake. "I don't feel like doing that right now, Cas. In fact, I've never felt less romantic in my entire life."

"That will soon change," Cas assured her. He didn't know why he hadn't thought of this before. With what he would show her, she couldn't help but feel loving towards him again. "The reverse ritual," he said to her.

Oh, right. That was the thing that Crowley had mentioned. She'd never actually gotten the opportunity to ask Cas what it was all about. "What is that, Cas?" she asked him now.

"You'll see," he said eagerly. "Or at least, I assume you will. To my recollection, it's never been conducted the other way around, but I see no reason why it should not work both ways. But you have to set a wedding date in order for us to begin the ritual."

"Is this just a way of distracting me from all of this other stuff?" Gail asked him suspiciously.

"No, it's entirely on point," he said quickly. "You'll see. Pick a date, please."

Gail sighed. OK, she'd play along. "October 15th," she said airily.

Cas's pulse quickened. That was just over a month from now. He and Gail were going to be married in a little over a month.

"There," Gail said to him. "Now what?"

"Now, tell it to the ring," he replied.

She raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You heard me. Tell it to the ring. Then, the next time that date is quoted to the ring, the reverse ritual will have begun." He took her ring hand and brought it up to her mouth. "Go ahead. Humour me."

Gail rolled her eyes, but she did as he requested.

Cas smiled. "Okay. Good." Then he turned his back on her and strode across the room. "Now, do me a favour. Take off the ring and toss it to me."

Gail looked at him for a moment, then she shrugged and did as he asked. Cas caught the ring and put it in the crook of his little finger. "I really hope this works, because it's unprecedented," he said to her. He put the ring to his lips and said, "October 15th."

Cas immediately began to glide across the room, until he was standing right in front of Gail. He smiled down at her. "It worked! Perfect," he said.

She was extremely puzzled now. "WHAT worked? You were over there, and now you're over here. So what? What the hell, Cas?"

"Just give it a minute," Cas said. He continued to smile down at her. They stood there, as the seconds ticked by, then a couple of minutes. "Oh, look. Nothing's happening," Cas said, his smile growing wider. He brought the ring up to his lips and told it the date again, and it glowed, then went back to its normal appearance.

"The reverse ritual," he told Gail, taking the ring off his finger and putting it back on hers. "It was designed as a failsafe for the groom to be able to back out of the wedding, if he so chose. Once the date is set and the ring is told, it will bring the wearer back to everyone who they have ever been intimate with, in reverse order, last being first. This was intended only for the women to do, of course. It was a way for the groom to find out if she had been promiscuous. If, at the end of the ritual, she was deemed to have been familiar with too many men, the prospective groom could opt to break the contract, and the ring would dissolve into dust from her finger."

"Oh. But that was only for the women, of course," Gail said sardonically.

"Yes, of course," Cas answered honestly. "The man was entitled to be as intimate with as many women as he wanted to be."

"Naturally," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Don't you get it, Gail? I just performed the reverse ritual, and the only person the ring led me to was you. There's your proof. It's only ever been you, and it will only ever be you."

Gail stared up at him. Was this for real, or was he making it up?

"You're having trouble believing this, aren't you?" Cas asked her quietly.

"Well, Cas, it's just...I don't know, it's just so weird. Besides, there are different degrees of 'being intimate', aren't there? Didn't you say that there were women in your room touching you last night?" she asked him.

Cas sighed. "But not in that way, Gail. Being intimate is defined as having been touched in your intimate area. Nothing else counts. You may still hug others, kiss them chastely, and touch them in an innocent and comforting way. There is nothing wrong with any of that. Those women were only attempting to make me feel comfortable after my long journey, and their touch was merely meant to be comforting. But, as you have seen, no other woman has ever touched me in an intimate manner, and no other woman ever will."

God, he was good. He had her convinced now that those other women were only doing their jobs, and it was perfectly reasonable for them to be in his room at night, helping him out. But if this whole thing was true, she did have her proof that he had never let another woman touch him in an intimate way, not for his entire existence. She winced internally. She only wished she could say the same.

"I'm sorry, Cas," she said, putting her arms around his neck. "It's just so hard to believe. I mean, look at you. You're so handsome. Women throw themselves at you all the time," she said.

He put his arms around her waist, smiling. "That doesn't mean I'll ever catch any of them," he said charmingly. "I only want you, Gail. I have only ever wanted you, and I could never want anyone else." He kissed her on the mouth, and she kissed him back. "OK, Cas. OK. I believe you," she said. "It just gets so difficult sometimes, especially right now. I never get to see you, and when I do, you're this...character." She gestured at his robes.

"I know," he said, caressing her through her clothing. He loved the feel of silk on her. "But it is merely a character that I play, and I'm afraid I'm going to have to get even worse in order for them to believe that I am who I say I am. But you have seen that my being unfaithful to you would be out of the question, and it will never happen."

Gail nodded. "All right, Cas." She looked around. "I wonder where Jasmina took off to. I should probably try to make nice with her, if we're trying to get in the government's good books. But I have no idea how I'm going to explain what I said, and what I did."

"She does not concern me," Cas said to Gail. "It is her father who I will be dealing with, soon. But you can't leave yet. We're not finished here."

She smiled at him. "I have absolutely no problem with making out for a while, but don't you think we should get down to business?"

He smiled thinly. "I meant that YOU have not performed the reverse ritual yet."

Oh, So, he was going to make her do it, too. But there wasn't too much she could say about it, not really. He had done it for her, and apparently, he had been the first male in history ever to have done so. So what kind of a hypocrite would she be if she refused to do it? A double standard the non-usual way was still a double standard. And there wasn't anything in her past that Cas didn't already know about, anyway.

Still, she was nervous now. "Are you sure the ring isn't just going to incinerate me on the spot?" she asked Cas. "You and I both know who it's going to take me to see, right?"

Cas frowned. "Yes, I know. And you are blameless in that regard. That was my fault entirely, and the ritual will give us closure on it in preparation for our wedding."

Gail gave a half-shrug. "OK, then." She brought her hand up to her mouth, but Cas said, "Wait." He walked back across the room, then he smiled at her. "I want you to come to me, as I came to you," he said. "At least, it had better be me you come to first, seeing as it is the most recent first," he said, but he grinned to show her that he was joking.

Gail smiled. No worries on that score. She lifted her ring hand to her lips. "October 15th," she said, and now she wondered if she was really committed to that date. She supposed so. She'd just picked the date out of her butt to humour Cas, more or less. But now that they had both said it out loud, it seemed more real. Holy moly.

Gail felt herself gliding across the room, and then she was standing directly in front of Cas. They smiled at each other. He'd known that she would be coming to him first, of course. But even as he embraced her now, he was just a little bit worried as to where they would be going next, and who they might see. When they had been separated all that time following the implementation of the cure, Cas knew that Sam had still been in love with Gail. She'd even told him that Sam had kissed her. Had he done more than that, and she had just been reluctant to tell Cas about it, for fear of making him angry? And if they were to be taken to see Sam, would Cas be able to handle that?

Gail knew they wouldn't be going to see Sam. He had only ever kissed her, that was all. And she would have told Cas the truth, even if it had made him furious. You couldn't lie to each other that way and expect to have a healthy relationship. So, thankfully, there would be no Sam.

There was, however, that one brief incident that she had put out of her mind, and Cas may have forgotten about. Suddenly, the ring took them to an outdoor cafe in Cairo. So this was where Crowley was at the moment, Castiel thought. Not a bad idea, really, staying geographically close, in case the call came. And Castiel was becoming increasingly sure now that the call would have to be placed.

But this man was too tall, and his demeanour was entirely too cheerful.

"Well, hello there, you two," Lucifer said.

They all stood there and stared at each other for a moment, all of them in shock.

Dammit! Crap! Gail had forgotten all about that. When she had been Sarah, Lucifer had tried to force himself on her. He had exposed himself to her, and he had indeed momentarily touched her in her most intimate of areas. Unfortunately.

Still, she thought, this could be a blessing in disguise. In fact, it could be the biggest bonus of all time. Gail reached into her skirt for her blade, but it wasn't there. She turned around to look at Cas. Surely, he would have his blade out already. But he just stood there, glaring at Lucifer.

"I should have known," Castiel said to Lucifer. "She told me that you tried to do to her body what you had already done to her mind."

"So, you two kids have set the date, have you?" Lucifer said cheerfully. "That's fantastic. And, yes, I tried to get 'up in there', as I believe the young people say these days. Hey, you can't blame a guy for trying, can you, Castiel? I mean, look what she's done for you. If she could take the stick out of your butt, I can only imagine what she could do for me."

"You are disgusting, and I will enjoy slamming the cage door shut on you myself," Castiel said to him.

"I wish you good luck with that. I really do," Lucifer said, raising his glass of wine to them. "You realize, of course, it's not going to be that easy."

"Well, why don't we just eliminate the need for all that, then?" Gail said angrily. "I don't know how you managed to take my blade, but I know Castiel's got to have at least a couple of weapons hidden under his robes, minimum. Why don't we just throw down now, and save everybody a lot of trouble?"

"God, she's cute," Lucifer said to Castiel. "I guess I can see what you see in her, at times. All of that spirit must translate into some real heat in the bedroom. But she would drive me nuts in just a couple of minutes with that lip of hers."

"Well then, you won't be too hurt when she rejects you," Castiel said sardonically.

Gail was looking at the two of them, open-mouthed. What the hell was going on here? Cas had Lucifer right in front of him, and he wasn't raising a hand to him? And why was her blade suddenly gone?

"Reject him?" she said to Cas. "Why don't we just kill him?"

"The ritual won't allow for that," Cas told her. "Most unfortunately. The inherent nature of the ritual being that these are men with whom the woman has been somehow intimate," he said with distaste, "would dictate that the husband-to-be may wish to kill those men. For several reasons, all of them excellent," he continued as Lucifer grinned. "Therefore, the ritual will not allow any of the involved parties to harm each other while engaged in the ritual itself. The woman must formally reject her former suitor in order for there to be true closure, and then the ritual can continue, or conclude, as the case may be."

Oh my God, Gail thought. Lucifer shoves his hand down my pants for two seconds, and suddenly he's a "former suitor". It was a good thing she didn't know who her real parents were. Imagine how proud they wouldn't be. And she'd thought that Crowley was going to be her worst humiliation.

"He molested me, but he never - " she started to say to Cas, but he was already nodding.

"I know that, Gail. You are blameless. Now, you can reject him."

She looked at Lucifer, who was smirking at her. "Are you sure you want to do that, Gail?" he said cheerfully. "I am the Alpha, after all. Last chance to trade up."

She wound up and smacked him across the face, hard. Cas had said he couldn't harm her, right? "I reject you," Gail said to him. "I reject the hell out of you."

Lucifer's head had rocked back from the blow, but he was still grinning. "Geez, why don't you tell me how you really feel," he said, touching his face where she'd hit him. "Well, I guess the only consolation I can take is that our Brother the King will be in for the same treatment in a minute. Sure I can't come along, take a quick video?"

And just like that, Cas and Gail were winked away. Lucifer's grin was the last thing that Gail saw in her mind's eye, sort of like the Cheshire Cat. She reached for Cas's hand as they teleported to their next destination.

"I'm sorry, Cas," she said. "I had forgotten. I wish we could have just done him in, right then and there. But I have to admit, that rejection was pretty satisfying."

"It was fun to watch, too," he said, smiling. But now he started to worry again. Where were they headed now, and who were they going to see?

They appeared at the crossroads, and he let out a sigh of relief. How ridiculous was it that Castiel was actually happy that the next man they were going to see was his Brother, the King of Hell? But, that meant that there would definitely be no Sam. The shameful day that they had allowed Crowley to touch her in that manner had occurred when Castiel had been a Demon. Therefore, since they were going in reverse chronological order, Cas had nothing further to be concerned about.

Crap, Gail thought. It's not like she hadn't known this would be coming, but she had just been humiliated in front of Lucifer, and now, here Crowley would be, needling her too.

"You know, I really wish that I'd been promiscuous with a better class of people," she quipped nervously to Castiel. He pulled her to him for a hug of support. Now he was extremely sorry that he had asked her to do this. And just why had he asked her to do it, anyway? Because a small part of him was still so insecure that he'd really wanted to know if she had been with anyone she hadn't told him about. Did it really matter, though? She had committed herself to him fully now by accepting the ring, and he was putting her through this humiliation. He ought to be ashamed of himself.

"Hello, sweetheart," Crowley said. "How's Egypt? A little warmer than you'd like, I imagine. Welcome to my world, all the time. Why do you think I spend so much time topside?"

Gail sighed. "We all know why we're here; let's just get it over with. I think I've suffered enough humiliation for one day."

Crowley looked at Cas. "What's she talking about?"

Cas frowned. "She's talking about me. She's talking about you. And she's talking about Lucifer."

"Lucifer?" Crowley echoed in surprise.

"Yes," Gail wailed. "I just love your ancient rituals. Apparently, I'm in great demand. My suitors are an Angel of the Lord, the King of Hell, and Satan himself. Let's see, decisions, decisions. I'm one classy lady, aren't I?" she said bitterly.

"He tried to force himself on her while he had her in Los Angeles," Castiel told Crowley.

"Well then, she is blameless," Crowley said calmly.

"Absolutely," Castiel agreed. "And as far as what we are here for, she is blameless in that regard, as well."

Crowley rolled his eyes. Here it came. But then his Brother surprised him.

"I am solely to blame," Castiel said somberly. "The fact that you touched her intimately was my fault, and my responsibility, alone. If I had not inflicted those injuries on her in the first place, the situation would never have arisen."

Crowley dipped his head to Castiel in acknowledgement. That was very mature and responsible of his Brother to admit. Perhaps he would be ready for the ultimate commitment, after all. Crowley looked at Gail and smiled. "Your fiance has done some growing up, I see," he said softly to her, without a trace of sarcasm.

But Gail just wanted this whole thing to be over now. She hadn't even reacted when the two men had been talking around her, and not to her. Whatever. Their ancient rituals stunk, and she just wanted to get the hell out of here, get away from Egypt, and get away from all of these men and their outdated thinking, for a while.

Crowley closed his eyes and thrust his head forward. He screwed up his face. "Sock away, sweetheart," he said to her. "Lord knows you're entitled, and we all know that I deserve it."

But now she didn't have the heart to do it. He wasn't being sarcastic or snarky for a change, and he had defended her when it had come to Lucifer. Why couldn't he have just been his usual, obnoxious self? It would have been so easy to just haul off and smack him one, then.

She grabbed his face with both hands and gave him a tiny kiss on the forehead. "I hereby reject you," she said softly.

Crowley's eyes snapped open in surprise, but Castiel and Gail were on the move again.

They stood hand in hand in front of the Rio Hotel in Las Vegas. "This is the last trip we'll be making," Gail told him. "But then, you already knew that, or you should have. I have no secrets from you, Cas, and I have never lied to you."

She could feel her ring hand shaking now, and she brought it up to eye level. Her engagement ring was shaking violently now, and she began to cry silent tears. Was it going to turn into dust and fall off her hand? She knew that two swallows did not make a summer, but maybe things worked differently when it came to their stupid ancient rules. The King of Hell was probably worth a few hundred guys at least. And, Lucifer? Who was she kidding? Regardless of the way the incidents had occurred, they had happened, and she would be lucky if it was only the ring that would be reduced to ashes by the ritual. Had she really thought that she was good enough to be able to walk down the aisle of a church in a white dress, and marry God's favourite Son?

Cas took her ring hand in both of his. "Enough," he told the ring. "She is blameless. I hold her blameless. None of it was her fault, or her responsibility. I love her, and if she will have me, I will commit myself to her on October 15th."

He kissed the ring, and it stopped shaking. "So, we have a date, if you're still willing to go through with it after I subjected you to that," Cas said, looking into her eyes. "I know you picked that date more or less arbitrarily, but I hope you're all right with it, because I don't think that I can bear to wait any longer."

They kissed just once, a long, slow kiss that went on for about five minutes. People passing by on the sidewalk looked at them and smiled. These must be two performers from the Arabian Nights show that was due to open here next month. The couple kissed and kissed, oblivious to the stares from the crowds of people.

Then, after a while, the man and woman clasped hands and walked down the Strip, milling in with the crowd and then disappearing.


	4. Bedposts, Broomsticks And Boils

Chapter 4 - Bedposts, Broomsticks And Boils

When Cas and Gail winked back to Egypt, she said, "I think I'll just go back to my hotel, Cas. I kind of lost it in there," she continued, nodding towards the museum, "and I don't think Jasmina should see me again. The important thing now is to get them to open those chambers for you. Just tell her I'm some crazy American woman with a huge crush on you, or something. You're way better off taking somebody like Sam with you, or Kevin, to read the ancient language on those bricks. Crowley, even, if you have to. We've got to focus on getting the Tablet now. Whatever I see, I'll try to turn a blind eye to." She smiled, waggling her finger at him. "Within reason, of course. If I see one wife with even a little bit of a baby bump, you're going to have a hell of a lot of explaining to do."

Cas laughed. "I love you, Gail." He kissed her once more, and she winked herself back to her hotel room.

She was right about getting help with the ancient language. Cas thought it couldn't hurt to have some other people around too, in case Jasmina had any ideas of being so forward again. He still didn't quite understand what that had been all about. He thought maybe because he was supposed to be the last in line, descended directly from the royal family, he would be desirable to many Egyptian women, seeking to elevate their position in society. Perhaps her father had even suggested that she ingratiate herself. Politicians were politicians, after all. But he could not allow her to get so close to him again. If their friends accompanied him to the museum, Jasmina would have no choice but to behave herself.

Cas popped over to Sam and Dean's hotel, and he asked Sam, Chuck, and Kevin to come with him to the museum. It was getting later now and Sam was flagging a bit, but Cas told him how important this could potentially be.

"They wouldn't let me in, Sam," Cas said quietly. "And if they won't let me in again tomorrow, I'll have to take drastic measures."

"Drastic?" Sam asked, frowning. "Such as?"

"Biblical," Cas said tersely.

Sam, Chuck and Kevin all looked at each other. What the hell did he mean by that?

"OK, Cas, OK," Sam said. "Just let me get a couple of cups of coffee into myself first."

"Never mind that. We'll get the librarian to serve you when we get there." The men exchanged glances again. Yeah, Cas was in character, all right. "Between the four of us, I want as much as we can translate from those bricks by sunrise. Depending on what we discover, I will go back to the tomb and invoke some words and phrases from those bricks. Then, if that is not good enough, I will go straight to the Governor and tell him I will loose the plagues of Egypt upon his city."

The men's jaws dropped. "THE Plagues?" Chuck said sharply.

"Of Egypt," Sam said, incredulous.

"That's what I said," Cas replied coolly. "And if that doesn't convince them I am of royal blood, nothing will. But just because I threaten them with the Plagues does not mean I expect them to take me seriously. I will actually have to unleash them. But don't worry. If it comes to that, I'll make sure that all of you are safe."

Sam started to list all of the Plagues that he could remember in his mind. As far as he could remember, there were about ten of them. And most of them had been pretty terrible by ancient standards, but if they prepared ahead of time, they should be fine. He was sure they wouldn't get down nearly as far as the last one, the most notorious and horrifying one. The Governor would capitulate way before then, he was sure.

"OK, let's go, then," he said, and the Angels accompanied him into the restroom. Then they all popped over to the museum.

This was too good, Rowena thought. Now the Angel was bringing her more men. Fantastic. She hadn't known if he would even be returning after his fiancee had thrown her little hissy fit, but she supposed the lure of the bricks was just too strong. Apparently, Rowena's son had been giving Gail some practical instruction on blade lore. Rowena was disgusted. Crowley's emasculation was much further along than she'd feared. But Castiel had brought some more men to her, so she was willing to put that little incident aside. For now.

Right now, she had all this man candy around, and Rowena was delighted. She made a pot of Egyptian coffee and brought it out to the men. Sam asked her politely for a cup, and so did Chuck and Kevin, interestingly enough. Castiel waved his hand absently at her, dismissing her. He was taking to this Sheikh persona a little too well, Rowena thought with bemusement. She wondered how things had gone between the couple after she'd fled the museum. Maybe she should have hung around to find out, but she hadn't wanted to take any chances with Gail when the girl had been in that state. The girl had already successfully killed Rowena once in the past, and she was definitely not looking for a repeat.

So Castiel could have his little piece of fluff, if he wanted Gail that badly. Rowena had noticed the ring on Gail's finger. If the two of them were willing to entrap themselves in the bland and boring web of monogamy, far be it from Rowena to argue. There were lots more fish in the sea.

She looked at each man now, as she poured the coffee. She ruled young Kevin out right away. Not that she had any compunctions about such things as age difference, or lost innocence, but he was far too weak and immature for Rowena. He had allowed Becky to lead him around by the nose because he'd been under the impression that his girlfriend would eventually allow him to enter the Promised Land, so to speak. But even though Becky's rejection of Kevin had seemed to force him a little further into adulthood, he was not a serious contender at this point.

Sam, or Chuck. Chuck, or Sam. They were both appealing male specimens in their own way, and each man could be of benefit to her in a different way. Sam was one of the sainted Winchesters. If she were to be able to turn him to her will, she could gain access to the secrets of the bunker, and to the inner circle. And it wasn't as if Samuel were incorruptible, Rowena knew. He had been addicted to Demon blood in the past, and he had also been in the cage with Lucifer. Also, he was in the habit of keeping things from his brother when it suited him. Yes, Sam was far from pure.

And Chuck? He was an Angel now, but he had been one of the worst sort, and not too long ago. She knew all about all of the terrible things he had done when he was a bad guy. So now he was an Angel again, after having been cast down and then reinventing himself all the way back up to being one of God's designates. But Rowena knew that Chuck still felt like the odd man out, in many ways. The Winchesters treated him with scorn, and although Chuck had assumed somewhat of a leadership role in Heaven, he still felt like he wasn't being taken seriously by the Angels or by the humans. Chuck would never be trusted quite enough to be welcomed into the inner circle, even though Gail had confided in him in the past and extended her hand in friendship to him.

And Chuck was still jealous. He'd been fighting against this feeling for a long time now, and he was better now than he once was. But he knew how those guys regarded him, and he had given up on ever changing their opinion of him. He felt a little like the eccentric cousin, tolerated due to his family ties, and due to the fact that he might be able to toss out a prophecy from time to time. But he would never be truly loved, like Bobby, Dean, or Sam. Or Cas.

Cas. Somehow, it always came back to him. Chuck had tried his best to be a good friend to Cas ever since Chuck had reformed himself, and he had been successful in a lot of ways. He'd given Cas his moral and political support during the tribunal, and even though the proceeding had culminated in Cas's execution, that had hardly been Chuck's fault. It had taken a while for Cas to fully trust him, but once Chuck had gotten to know Gail better and had grown to genuinely like her, Cas had thawed towards Chuck because of that. Then, when Cas had been put to death, Chuck had been the one to shake Gail out of her dream world and back into reality. And, when it turned out that Cas had been resurrected, Chuck had been thrilled for both of his friends.

But Chuck knew that God Himself and Cas's friends had glossed over many of his misdeeds, concealing them from the rest of Heaven. So all of the other Angels still thought that Castiel was a shining hero, and they did, to this day. But Chuck knew that Cas was far from perfect, he just didn't know exactly why he felt that way. Ever since Chuck's reascension to Heaven, Cas had been nothing but kind to him. But there was just something about the guy. His life was just too perfect. He was God's favourite, Bobby's right-hand man. A handsome, masculine warrior Angel, who all the guys respected and all the women fawned over. Chuck had been trying to keep his promise not to look in on Cas and Gail any more in the bedroom because he'd kind of seen Cas's point about it being disrespectful to Gail. But he knew that there was nothing to look in on these days, anyway. Cas had actually had so much hot sex recently that he'd told Gail he wanted to wait until the wedding night, as per the ancient custom. Chuck shook his head at that. Imagine having such an embarrassment of riches that you could actually opt to hold off for a while. Chuck felt like a starving orphan child in wintertime, with his nose pressed against the windowpane of the restaurant watching Cas and Gail enjoy a huge, sumptuous meal, but deferring dessert because they just simply couldn't eat another bite.

And now, Cas was walking around town with his servants and his wives, making people bow down to him and move out of the way for him. Chuck was fighting himself very hard these days, but he felt like he was losing the battle.

"Fetch me the compendium," Cas said to the room in general now. He was back in character, and he had found a section on the brick he was looking at to be so interesting that he had just blurted it out.

"So, what, we're all your servants, now?" Chuck said sharply.

Sam and Kevin looked up from their respective bricks.

"I need the compendium," Cas said coolly. He didn't want to lose his spot on the brick he was looking at, or his train of thought. And it would appear strange to Jasmina if he just got up and got it himself.

Chuck rose and stalked over to the end of the table, picked up the book, and brought it back to where Cas sat. He dropped the book on the table in front of him. "There. Is there anything else you require, Your Highness? Some slave girls to turn the pages for you, maybe?"

Cas looked at Chuck, puzzled. What was his problem? They all knew that Cas was just playing a part here. But he couldn't let Chuck talk to him like that in front of Jasmina, either. He would lose all credibility if he let something like that slide.

"I realize that you are American but be reminded that you are speaking to a member of the royal family," Cas said to Chuck. "You need to mind your manners."

"Do I?" Chuck said coldly.

"Go for a walk, Chuck," Sam said. "Cool off."

Great. Now Sam was giving him orders, too. But Chuck realized he'd better step away and collect himself. He'd better not do anything to jeopardize this mission, or Bobby would kill him. He turned away from the table and walked outside, taking a couple of deep breaths.

The sun was down now, and the temperature was nice and cool. Chuck took a couple more breaths, and then started to walk around the museum grounds.

He was acting like a petulant child. Was yelling at Cas going to make anything any better? Was it going to elevate Chuck's status in Heaven, or in any of their eyes? Was it going to get Chuck laid? Was it going to just magically erase Lucifer from the face of the Earth?

"Are you all right?" Jasmina's soft voice, from behind him.

Chuck turned around. "Yeah, I'm fine," he told her. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to insult your Sheikh," he added. Part of their orientation had included the fact that many native Egyptians were very protective of their royals.

She laughed softly, approaching him. She touched his arm lightly. "He's an obnoxious jerk," she said quietly, and then she clapped a hand over her mouth, like Gail would do. "Oops. I never said that." Chuck grinned. Then Jasmina sighed. "The truth is, they're all obnoxious jerks. Such is our society. Even in this day and age, intelligent and vital women are still subjugated, and treated like slaves. We are expected to be sweet and submissive, and always defer to the man. Heaven forbid we should have an independent thought, or opinion."

"But you seem to be doing all right," Chuck said to her. "You're the head of the museum, aren't you? Your face isn't covered, nor is every inch of your skin." He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry. I couldn't help but notice, mainly because I was looking."

Jasmina smiled. She moved a little closer to Chuck, and he could smell her perfume now. He couldn't quite place the scent, but it was like a light musk. He breathed it in. How long had it been since he'd been this close to a really attractive, available woman?

"You're a very nice-looking man, and you have a beautiful beard," Jasmina said to him, tickling his chin. "If you were Egyptian, you could be a Sheikh," she told him softly. "And I would be glad to be one of your wives."

She was killing him. He really shouldn't do this. But Chuck couldn't stand it anymore. He leaned down and kissed her on the mouth. She didn't push him away; in fact, she put her arms around his neck and opened her mouth to his. Chuck pushed his tongue into her mouth and not only did she give him her tongue in return, but she grabbed his hand and put it on her breast. Chuck slipped his hand under the cloth of her gown and teased her nipple, and she grabbed him through his pants, hard.

Chuck gasped. That had almost hurt, but it also felt amazing. But, what the hell was he doing? A minute ago, he had been in Cas's face, and now he was molesting the Governor's daughter. Had he signed an employment contract with Lucifer, all of a sudden? If he wasn't careful, he was going to sabotage this mission single-handedly.

He stepped away reluctantly from Jasmina. "I'm very flattered," he told her in a thick voice. "But as you pointed out, I'm an American, and you're the Governor's daughter, an Egyptian woman of taste and refinement. I apologize." He gave her a small bow, and then he went back into the museum.

Rowena stood there for a moment, feeling several things. She was a little angry at his eventual rejection of her; Rowena wasn't used to being rejected by so many men in one day, and it was beginning to get on her nerves. But now she knew for sure that Chuck could be hers, if she so chose. The poor guy had done without for an awfully long time, and he had only been torturing himself further with his voyeuristic behaviour. When she had grabbed him as hard as she had, fully intent on dealing a little pain along with the pleasure, she'd seen the light in Chuck's eyes and she had known his secret.

Now Rowena had some further deliberating to do. She'd have loved to have had Dean, but Rowena knew that thinking that way would just be a waste of her time. Just like Castiel. All she could ever have with Dean Winchester would be one hot, steamy session of animal sex. Not that there was anything wrong with that. But her purpose was recruitment, not just sex. Besides, Dean was more interested in the woman called Nicole than he was ready to admit. Likewise, Ethan would be out of the question. He was a law enforcement Angel, his wife and son were still alive, and he still considered himself to be in a committed relationship. Ethan would wait for his Karen for as long as it took.

That left only Sam, and Rowena hadn't made her mind up about him yet. He was highly intelligent, and he was more of a man than Chuck would ever be, but Rowena wasn't sure whether that would be very good for her, or very bad. His acquisition could be the jackpot, the Holy Grail. But was it realistic? Chuck would certainly be a lot more malleable. The only problem was that Chuck's resentment towards the other team members could probably be exploited, but the source of that resentment mainly stemmed from the fact that Chuck was a bit of a misfit, an outsider to the inner circle. And Sam was directly in the middle of the hallowed circle.

Rowena returned to the library area just in time to see the men packing up to leave.

"Thank you for your assistance," Sam said to her, smiling. "And for your coffee. But we're done for the night. If you'll show us where they go, we'll put the bricks back where they belong."

He and Cas nodded to each other. "Wait for us here, fellas," Sam said to Chuck and Kevin. "We'll be back for the others in a second." They'd discussed it before Jasmina had returned, and it had been determined that, as the bricks were so heavy, Cas and Sam had better be the only two to carry them. Bruised male egos were one thing but smashed priceless ancient artifacts and international incidents would be quite another.

Chuck had apologized to Cas as soon as he had come back into the museum. He didn't know what had gotten into him, he told Cas. Chuck guessed maybe he hated the heat almost as much as Gail did. Cas broke character long enough to touch Chuck on the arm and give him a brief smile, and then they had gotten back to work.

But Cas was starting to realize that this was a fool's errand, a giant waste of their time. There was way too much complex translation to be done, and the words and phrases that they had been able to glean in this amount of time had been unremarkable. He was beginning to be convinced that the cerebral way was not going to be the way to go here.

Once the bricks were put away, the men bade Jasmina a good evening and they emerged from the front doors of the museum. Cas snapped his fingers and the chauffeur pulled the limousine up to the front steps. He had been waiting all that time, of course. The chauffeur got out and opened the back door. Cas got in without a look or a word to his friends, and the car pulled away.

Sam, Chuck and Kevin looked at each other and shrugged. They began to walk down the road and then, when they were out of view of the museum, Chuck and Kevin took Sam's arms and winked him back to their hotel.

The next morning, Cas rang for Ibrahim.

His manservant knocked lightly on the door a couple of minutes later. "Enter," Cas said. He had just finished getting dressed when Ibrahim entered.

Cas noticed that Ibrahim was walking more slowly today. As the manservant closed the door behind him, Cas could see that he was moving gingerly, and as he bowed and said, "Sheikh," Cas could see the lines of pain on his face.

"Let me see your back," Cas demanded. Ibrahim took off his coat and shirt and turned around to show his back to his employer.

Cas had to maintain his stoic facade, but the sight shocked him. There was not an inch of skin on the man's back that was not red and angry-looking. None of the sores were actively bleeding, but Cas could see now why the man was in so much pain. He felt horrible. But he could not show it. And considering the other heinous things that he may have to do over the next week or so, this was merely an appetizer.

"Get dressed, and then have the car brought around. I am going to pay the Governor a visit today. You may come with me if you wish. In fact, I think you should. Then you will observe first-hand what may befall those who treat my family with such disrespect."

Ibrahim bowed gingerly again, then put his clothing back on and hurried downstairs. After the whipping he'd received last night, he was very eager not to anger the Sheikh any further. And he had definitely learned his lesson. He had forgotten his place, and his Sheikh had had to remind him of where that place was. If he had ever worried that his employer had been seduced by the Western world, Ibrahim worried no longer. And it made him love and respect the Sheikh even more.

"I do not see anyone who does not already have an appointment," Governor el-Jakar said into the phone. "You know that."

"He says he is the last surviving member of the royal family, Sir," his secretary said. "He says he was refused entry into his family's burial chambers."

The Governor sighed. Well, at least the Sheikh, if that was truly what he was, had finally come to the right place. The Governor was the only one who had the authority to order the chambers opened for this man. But, did he want to? How did they even know that this man was who he claimed to be? Apparently, he had been studying in the United States for a number of years, and he had only returned when word had gotten out about the discovery of the new chambers. He reportedly looked and behaved like he could be a member of the royal family, but the Governor was not yet satisfied that was the truth.

"That is too bad," he barked into the phone. "Tell him to make an appointment." Then he slammed the phone down.

A moment later, his office door burst open, and the Sheikh strode angrily into the room. "An appointment?" he exclaimed arrogantly. "I do not make appointments! People rearrange their schedules to accommodate ME!"

The Governor sat back in his chair. "Is that right?" he said casually. He eyed the Sheikh curiously. Correct garb, arrogant expression, and haughty attitude. Check. He even had his toady of a manservant trailing behind him. And if the Governor's eyes were not failing him, that same servant was moving very much like someone who had been recently flogged. Interesting.

"Yes, that's right," Cas shot back. "I am here to give you one more chance to open those chambers for me."

The Governor smiled. "You are giving me a chance? How generous of you! Well, how do we even know that you are who you claim to be? Where is your proof?"

"Proof?!" Cas echoed.

"Yes, proof!" the Governor shouted, rising to his feet. "I have a responsibility to our government and to our culture about who we let in there."

"Well, it is my culture too, and my heritage, and that should take precedence over anything else," Cas said coolly.

"We only have your word for that, though, don't we?" the Governor said. He shrugged. "No proof, no entry. It's as simple as that."

"Fine. You want proof? You shall have your proof, then. I will invoke the Plagues of Exodus, one per day, until you open those chambers for me," Cas said quietly.

The Governor gaped at him. He couldn't decide whether he should laugh out loud, or just to himself. "The Plagues," he repeated sardonically.

"Yes," Cas said shortly. "I believe you should be familiar with those. If not, you had best do your research and make a decision about exactly how much you think your people can stand. I am prepared to go as far as I need to, until you see things my way."

"All right, that's it. You need to leave, now," the Governor said, rolling his eyes. "This has been entertaining, but I think you're delusional. Next time, make an appointment, and bring some credentials."

"In one hour, all of the town's water will be turned into blood," Cas told him. "Blood will flow from your taps, the river will run red, and the town reservoir will be filled with blood. This is Day One." Then he wheeled around and marched out of the room, robes flowing behind him.

The Governor stared after him for a moment, shaking his head slowly. Sheikh or not, the man had obviously spent too much time watching melodramatic movies in his precious United States. The Plagues of Exodus, indeed. He was surprised the man hadn't gone down to the river and scooped up a few frogs to let loose in his office, while he was at it. Well, at least he was leading off in the proper order. Water into blood, eh? He was probably going to put some red dye into a few water bottles, or something. The man was obviously a lunatic.

The Governor went back to his paperwork, chuckling.

Operation Water Hoard had already begun the night before. As per Cas's instructions, the men had run around town buying up as many cases of water as they could, and Cas had had his staff round up all the wild camels and dromedaries in the area and corral them in his back yard. He would ensure that his friends had all the hydration and nourishment they needed. And if the people of Luxor were to suffer, which they would, Cas would have to find a way to be OK with that. If the Governor truly cared about his constituents, he would capitulate soon, before things got truly out of hand. But the gauntlet had been thrown down now, and Cas had to follow through on his threat.

Crowley arrived when Castiel called him, and they went to the reservoir first. They popped inside the gates and incapacitated the guards, then Crowley touched the lock to the reservoir tank with his blade, and it sprang open. Castiel looked at him in surprise.

"What?" Crowley said cheerfully. "Didn't know I could do that, did you? It's not only your boyfriends, the Winchesters, that can help in that regard, you know."

Cas sighed, saying nothing. Now was not the time to argue. He and Crowley lifted the top of the tank and shifted it aside.

"What now?" Cas said.

"Take out your blade," Crowley told him, taking out his own. Cas produced his, and Crowley touched his blade to Cas's, saying some words in the ancient language. The blue and red glow produced from their combined blades became a deep magenta, and then Crowley said, "Now, in the water, together."

They plunged their blades into the water, holding them together, and the water began to change instantly. After a few minutes, the entire tank was filled with blood.

They withdrew their blades from the water, and Cas looked down in astonishment. "It's amazing what we Originals can accomplish when we combine our powers," Crowley told him. "And this is just the beginning."

"We'll see," Castiel said, frowning. "I don't want to see the people suffer any longer than they have to."

"Well, that'll be up to the Governor, won't it?" Crowley said casually. "If he truly cares about his people, he'll put a halt to things very quickly. But if he is stubborn, like his predecessor was, they'll have to vote him out next election. Well, those that are left alive, anyway. Come on. Let's go."

They went to the river and repeated the process there, and then to the water plant.

"There," Crowley said. "There's all your sources. Luxor has no more water. Let the frivolity commence."

Castiel was disturbed. Thousands of people would soon be discovering that their water had turned into blood, and there would be nothing that they could do about it. The heat of the day was scorching now, and he supposed they could make do with other fluids for the time being, but eventually, they would need water, or they would die.

"You're doing the right thing, Castiel," Crowley said softly. "You know you are. But the right thing isn't always the easy thing, and it isn't always the kind and gentle thing, either. But I'm not telling you anything you don't already know, am I? Pity not all of your lot know it. I'll see you tomorrow." Then he snapped himself away.

So, he had somehow pulled it off, thought an annoyed Governor. He'd honestly thought that all he would see would be a parlour trick or two, if that. But the guy had somehow managed to make water into actual blood. The Sheikh obviously had some thugs on his side who had attacked the guards at the reservoir and the water plant. Probably some radical Bedouins who were looking to align with the royal family, hoping to ingratiate themselves enough to get some of their land back, maybe. Well, the Governor was in charge, not the bloody nomads, and not this so-called Sheikh. The Governor had to admit that he didn't know how the man had done it, but if he thought the Governor was intimidated, he was dreaming.

Still, the constituents had to be appeased, and by that evening, panic was starting to set in. So the Governor made a public address from his mansion that night that was disseminated on TV, the radio, and the Internet. They hadn't found out exactly what had happened with the water supply just yet, he told the public, but rest assured he was looking into it. In the meantime, conserve any water or fluids on hand, and the Governor made a promise that no one would die of thirst in his city. He would send his private helicopter out to another city for water, if he had to.

In the morning, the water was still blood, and now there were frogs everywhere. But the Governor knew that there was nothing magical or supernatural about that. Of course there were frogs everywhere. They lived in water. Now that the water was blood, the frogs wanted no part of it. So they had deserted all of the bodies of water, and had begun to encroach on the town. That only made scientific sense.

But as the day went on, the frogs started to die, and now there were a bunch of smelly dead frogs laying around everywhere, and people weren't happy about it. The Governor deployed forces all around the city to clean up the dead frogs. An annoyance, to be sure, but hardly a dire situation.

Frank tended to agree with the Governor on that score, but Gail told him that she needed him to come to her room and get rid of all the dead frogs.

"They're freaking me out, Frank," she said.

"How are they freaking you out? They're dead, aren't they?" Frank smirked.

"Frank, I swear to God, if you don't come here right now and get rid of all these frogs, I'm gonna lose it!" she said, slamming down the phone on her nightstand.

He and Jody came to Gail's room a few minutes later. "It's open," she called out when they knocked.

Frank pushed the door open, knocking aside a bunch of dead frog bodies. OK, he had to admit that there were a lot of dead frogs in here.

Gail was on the bed with the mosquito netting zipped around her, but even that thin veil of protection was going to be rendered moot soon, as there were dead frogs covering practically every inch of the netting.

"Please help me get rid of these guys," she pleaded. "Maybe if we can at least get them off the netting and off the bed, maybe, just maybe, I can swallow my bile long enough to help you guys shovel the rest off the terrace, or something," Gail lamented. Then she sighed. "I sure hope Cas knows what he's doing."

On the third day there were lice, and on the fourth came the swarms of flies. Once again, this made perfect ecological sense. With all of the frogs dead, the other insects were allowed to proliferate unchecked. His constituents were becoming very irritable now, but the Governor was not about to give in. There was nothing mystical about what was happening; it was all down to science. Still, he was starting to wonder now what some of the other Plagues were. As Governor, he supposed he should probably know that, but he didn't. That had been ancient times. Obviously, this Sheikh had access to Google, the same as everyone else did. All he'd had to do was perform his first parlour trick, and the rest had naturally followed.

Still, the Governor's daughter was an expert on ancient Egyptian culture, was she not? Perhaps he should pay her a visit at the museum, just to see what she had to say on the matter. The Governor wasn't exactly the most enlightened man on Earth, but he did love his daughter, and he realized that she had a fine mind. She was beautiful, too, but regrettably, still single. Her mother had died a couple of years prior, never having received any grandchildren, and the Governor felt sad about that. In his way, he was proud of his daughter, but he was also disappointed that she hadn't seemed to show any interest in getting married. She was still young, but she wouldn't remain so forever. But, to his credit, her father had pretty much left her alone, to live her own life. These were modern times, after all, and he was trying to be modern.

He picked up the phone and called the museum. Rowena answered on the second ring, and the Governor let her know that he was coming over, and to have his favourite tea ready for him when he got there.

Rowena hung up. Damn it. How the hell was she supposed to know what his favourite kind of tea was? This was all she needed. But she guessed she was stuck, at least for the moment. Actually, it was a shame that there was such a taboo in society about incest these days. If this were ancient times, she would just seduce the Governor, and then she would have access to all of his power. Then she might just shut down the Angels and the humans. But she supposed that kind of thing was very frowned on in this day and age of political correctness. Not that that had exactly stopped them in the past. Egyptians were hardly lily-white when it came to these matters.

But he'd said he wanted to ask her about the Plagues, and Rowena was very intrigued by that. The game was afoot, all right. She hadn't particularly enjoyed the last few days either, but Rowena had a spell that produced fresh water, so that part hadn't bothered her too much. Water into blood? Plagues of Exodus? That was so Biblical, it had her son's, Castiel's, and Bobby's names written all over it. And Lucifer could do nothing about it, because he couldn't even get near Luxor. It was hilarious.

As the Governor headed toward the museum, he looked out the back window of the car at the landscape. Pockets of the sky were black with buzzing flies now, and animals were falling down dead by the roadside. They were starting to die from dehydration and disease. This was not good. It was still completely explanatory as far as nature went, though. But now he was glad he was going to speak to his daughter. He would find out exactly what the other Plagues had been, and in what order they had occurred, and then he would have a decision to make.

The camels and dromedaries that had been penned up in Cas's back yard were all dead now, but he had had them milked before the disease had gotten hold of them, and now he had more than enough milk and water for his human friends and his house staff.

Ibrahim was in awe of his boss now. The Sheikh had moved swiftly and decisively, and the fact that he had invoked the ancient Plagues on the Governor, and that they were actually happening, was enough to convince Ibrahim that the Sheikh was no one to be trifled with. But he was a little concerned now.

Ibrahim bowed before Cas. "Begging your pardon, Sheikh, but now that the animals are all dead, what are we going to do for livestock?" He bowed lower. Ever since the whipping, Ibrahim had not raised even the tiniest of questions, not wishing for a repeat. But the running of the household was his responsibility.

But the Sheikh merely smiled thinly. "We will have healthy animals again in an hour or so," he said. "Do not be concerned, Ibrahim. I look after everyone in my purview."

And he certainly would. Things were going to get really bad now, and Cas couldn't let his friends and family cope on their own any more, not when he had all of these resources here.

"Have two cars brought around, Ibrahim," Cas said to his manservant. "We will go into town and pick up some house guests. The Governor's unfortunate stubbornness has condemned his city, and there are some people there that I will extend my hospitality to."

"Yes, Sir," Ibrahim said, bowing again. He sighed. The Americans. He should have known. But he'd better not say anything. The Sheikh was very touchy when it came to that subject. Perhaps he'd made the acquaintance of a couple of the reporters in Washington and they had befriended each other. It didn't seem like this Sheikh had much of a heart, but he was a human being, and perhaps it was possible that he had struck up a friendship with one or more of the men while he was there.

And there was the way he had been looking at that American female. She was a reporter, as well. Had he lain with her when he had been there, and was hoping for a repeat here? Ibrahim hoped not, although he knew he had better not say anything about it. The Sheikh had fourteen wives at his beck and call; lovely, cultured Egyptian women who could cater to his every need, and help him to continue the family bloodline. Ibrahim wondered if the Sheikh would insist on bringing that American woman into the palace. He sighed again. There would be nothing he could do about it even if that were the case. And he had to keep things in perspective. The sooner the new chambers were opened, the sooner the reporters would get their story, and then they would go home. If the Sheikh wanted to commune with the Westerners for a short time, Ibrahim would look the other way. And he knew how appealing an American woman could be, on a short-term basis. They were bold, wanting to be the man's equal. That meant that they gave as good as they got in the bedroom. They would actually get on top of the man sometimes, and they would be very vocal about their satisfaction. How could that not be exciting, for a change? Egyptian women were sweet and obedient, but they were trained to be so passive that it drove a man crazy sometimes. Yes, Ibrahim could definitely understand the appeal that woman might have to the Sheikh.

They started the drive into town to pick up Cas's people at the same time as Crowley stood in the back yard of the palace replenishing the livestock, and the Governor's car pulled up to the museum.

Crowley was humming a little tune as he conjured the new animals. His Brother was in rare form these days, and the King of Hell had been very impressed. The instant that Castiel had invoked the Plagues, he had followed through without any equivocation, and he was allowing things to take their course even though the townspeople were clearly suffering now. Crowley didn't think anyone had actually died yet, but it was only a matter of time. He was in agreement with the Governor that there was no magic at work here. It was a simple matter of science, and of mathematics. Dehydration plus disease equaled death.

But now the Winchesters and the God Squad were coming, and Gail would be here, of course. How long before one of them guilted Castiel into stopping the process before it arrived at its necessary conclusion? Crowley had better stay close now. If Castiel lacked the stones to do what needed to be done, Crowley could take over. The plan was working. They couldn't stop now.

"I have no tea for you, Father. My water has all turned to blood," Jasmina told him. It was a darn good excuse, and now she didn't have to worry about the fact that she wouldn't know what his favourite tea was.

"Yes, I'm aware," the Governor said testily. He gave her a quick embrace. "How are you, my daughter?"

"I am all right," she answered formally. "You wanted to talk to me about the Plagues? And the Sheikh?"

"Yes," the Governor said, sitting across from her at the library table. His bodyguards had locked the museum doors and were standing by them, out of earshot. "I need to know how much worse this could get, Jasmina."

"I've met the Sheikh," Jasmina told her father. Rowena smiled at his shocked expression. "That's right. He came here to study the bricks. He brought a few of those Americans along with him."

"He was studying the bricks?" her father asked. "Did he say why?"

Jasmina lifted an eyebrow to her father. "I'm a woman. I'm fortunate he spoke to me at all."

The Governor nodded absently. "Does he seem legitimate to you?"

"He's certainly arrogant enough to be a member of the royal family," Jasmina said with a hint of a smile. "He seems a little too friendly with those Americans, though."

The Governor thought about that. "We've experienced half of the Plagues now, but they can all be explained away by natural means. Cause and effect. Except for that first one, of course. What are the other Plagues?"

"You're the Governor; shouldn't you know that?" Rowena quipped.

"Don't be insolent, Jasmina," he snapped.

"Apologies, Father," she said. "The other Plagues, in the original order, are: boils, thunderstorms of hail and fire, locusts, darkness for 3 days, and then, of course, the big one. Death for every first-born child."

The Governor's heart sank. He'd known about that one, of course. But he was supposed to be a leader. How likely was it that this man would be able to pull all of these things off? Boils were supposed to be next. Well, that wouldn't be all that surprising, would it? There were restrictions on water usage, because no one was allowed to bathe right now. Temperatures were at record levels. Of course people would get boils, and rashes. Uncomfortable, maybe, but not fatal. Thunderstorms of hail and fire? That would be a little harder to manufacture, but it could also be interpreted a couple of different ways. There were active volcanoes in the region. There could just be a violent storm brewing, after many dry, humid days. The more days that elapsed without the rain, the more violent the storm would be. And locusts were indigenous to the area; in fact, with the death of the frogs, he was surprised they hadn't been overrun with locusts already. But 3 days of darkness would be very hard to accomplish. Yes, the Sheikh could have his thugs attack the power plant and shut the electricity down from there. But most of the homes here had generators. And the Plague was supposedly total darkness; did the Sheikh intend to throw a blanket around the sun, the moon, and the stars, too?

No, the Governor was not going to bow down to this Western dilettante. He was running a good confidence game, but he would be exposed for the fraud he was very soon. The death of every first-born child? There was no way that was going to happen.

"Do not worry, my dear," the Governor said, chucking Jasmina under the chin. "I believe this man is an impostor, and he will soon be revealed. It will never get to that point, I assure you."

Jasmina smiled. Damn right, it wouldn't. She would be out of here way before then. Still, she didn't want to leave here empty-handed, if she could help it. "I will do some research on the royal family, and on this man," she told her father. "If I find out anything useful, I will let you know immediately."

"That's my girl," he said, kissing her on the forehead. Then he strode to the foyer, snapping his fingers at his bodyguards.

Rowena waited until after they'd left, and then she picked up the phone and dialed the number of the hotel.

Sam and Dean were packed and ready to go. Cas had called, finally, and said he was coming to get them all. Thank God. It was getting a little too interesting here now. They were sick of shoveling dead frogs out of the way every time they wanted to move, the fly situation was getting downright disgusting, and they could smell the stench of rotting animal carcasses all over town. The extreme heat wasn't exactly helping the situation, either. The Governor had been making all kinds of promises to his people to fix the situation but promises seemed to be all they were. And they were in a middle-of-the-road hotel. From what Frank had told them, things were even worse in the far reaches of town, and Jody and Gail had been going nuts. Cas had called over there, too, and he had assured Frank that they would all be brought to the palace today. At least they all still had lots of water. Or so Cas had thought.

The phone rang in their room. Sam answered, and he was surprised to hear that it was Jasmina, the woman from the museum. "I may have uncovered some information about what the chambers may hold," she told him. "But I have to admit, I need some help with the language. I noticed that you seem to have an excellent grasp of the tongue. Perhaps you would like to help me to decipher what I have found?"

Sam thought about this. Truthfully, they didn't really care what was in the chambers, as long as the Tablet was in there. But maybe one of the ancient documents had some intel on the Tablet, or on any of the protections that might be around it. He couldn't pass up an opportunity like that.

"What about the Sheikh?" Sam asked her.

"I don't want to involve him in this right now," Jasmina said carefully. "Until we know exactly what we're dealing with here, I don't want to jump the gun." He could hear the smile in her voice now. "I know that seems strange, considering who my father is, but I haven't told him anything about it yet, either. I'd just like to leave it between you and me, until we can decipher its meaning. Agreed?"

Sam nodded. "Agreed." He told her he'd meet her at the museum in about half an hour.

When Cas got to Sam and Dean's hotel, Ibrahim opened the back door of the second car for him to step out. "Wait here," he instructed the manservant. Then he swept into the lobby of the hotel, and Bobby, the Musketeers, and the Winchesters were already there, waiting for him.

"It doesn't smell very good here," Cas said, making a face.

"Not as good as at the palace, I imagine," Bobby said.

Cas looked at him. "Everything's pleasant at the palace," he said calmly. "That is why you are coming there with me."

"Just a minute," Sam said. He told Cas about Jasmina's phone call. Cas was puzzled. What could that be all about? But he agreed that Sam had to go, to find out. It was too bad he couldn't go as well. But if the discovery was truly significant, they needed to find out. And Cas could sort of understand why Jasmina didn't want him involved. The Sheikh and her father were at loggerheads at the moment; that would put her in a very awkward position.

"I'll pop Sam over there, then I'll be right back," Bobby said.

"I'll call Bobby or Dean when I'm done, and somebody can come and get me," Sam said to Cas. "Or you can send a car for me, or however that works."

Cas nodded. Bobby and Sam walked to the mens' room, and when Bobby came back out, the men picked up their bags and walked outside.

"Put your bags down," Cas told them. They exchanged glances but obeyed. Cas snapped his fingers, and the chauffeurs of both cars came to grab the suitcases.

"Put them in the lead car," Cas ordered them. He looked at his friends. "That is where you will be seated," he told them. "We will make our other stop, and then we will go to the palace."

He strode to the second car and waited for Ibrahim to open the door. Once Cas was inside, his friends exchanged bemused glances and went to the lead car. The chauffeurs had just finished loading the suitcases into the spacious trunk, and they stood there for a moment, debating. They were not there to serve the Americans, but the Sheikh would be watching. The chauffeurs moved to the back doors of the lead car and opened them for the American men. Dean grinned. This might be all right.

Frank, Jody and Gail were already standing outside the hotel with their bags when the cars pulled up in front. It was just as hot inside as it was outside, and the smell was actually worse in there. The hotel management had basically given up, and the place was overrun with the corpses of the diseased animals that had wandered inside, trying to escape the hot sun. Then, they had collapsed and died, and then the flies had come. They were laying eggs in the orifices of the dead animals, and the owners were not sticking around to find out what was going to come out of those eggs. The entire staff had packed up and left the night before, leaving the guests to their own devices.

Gail saw Cas step out of the limousine, and she smiled. He was a sight for sore eyes. She had been wondering how long it was going to take for him to step up to the plate. If he had waited one more day, they were going to have had words. But he was here now, to deliver them from his Plagues. And yes, of course she knew that he was behind everything. He had hinted around about how bad it was potentially going to get, but she was sure that he'd had no choice but to do it.

"Fetch their bags and load them in the trunk," Cas ordered the chauffeur. He looked at Ibrahim. "They will be riding in my car," he told his manservant. "You will transfer to the lead car."

Ibrahim drew in a sharp breath. Not only was the Sheikh proposing to ride with the American woman, he wanted Ibrahim in the other car. Of course, the other man and woman were going to be in the same car, so his employer would have chaperones. And there was nothing that Ibrahim could do about it, anyway.

"Sir," he said, bowing low.

"Please, follow me," Cas said to Gail, Jody and Frank. He opened the back door of the second car himself for Gail to get in, then Jody and Frank followed, and then Cas got in last.

After a moment, the cars started to move, and Cas picked up the phone to speak to the chauffeur. "Turn up the air conditioning," he instructed. He hung up the phone and smiled at Gail. "Now let's get you comfortable," he said. He reached out and removed the veil that covered her face, tossing it on the floor of the car. He touched her face. "There. How's that?"

"Much better," Gail said, smiling. "Thanks for the air conditioning."

"Of course," Cas nodded, smiling. He took her hand.

"You got there just in time, Cas," Frank said. "They were about to deduct a couple of stars from our high-class accommodations."

"I think once the maggots hatched, we might have gone down even further than that," Jody quipped. She had taken off her face covering too, putting it on the seat beside her.

Frank shifted uncomfortably. "I think I might be a day early on the boils, though," he said, wincing. "I hope the translation that Sam told us about was literal and that it only happens to us guys, though. I think these ladies have suffered enough. It's not even any fun joking about being their master, any more."

Cas took Gail's other hand in his, too. "Has it really been that bad?" he asked her softly.

She shrugged. "I won't lie; it hasn't been fun. But I'm sure everyone else has been going through the same stuff. Way too many flies, lice, and dead frogs, and way too many animal corpses. But at least we had lots of water, up until last night."

Cas was puzzled. It just occurred to him that neither this group nor the men in the lead car had brought any water with them. He had plenty, but they had all assured him that they had put aside a good supply. "What do you mean, up until last night?" he asked.

"Up until a group of guys with semi-automatic weapons stormed the hotel last night and decided that they were thirstier than we were," Frank said dryly.

Cas was horrified. "Why didn't you call me?"

"And what exactly is the number in the Land of Entitlement?" Frank said sharply.

"That's not fair, Frank," Jody rebuked him. "There was nothing Cas could have done, not without blowing his cover. And he's getting us now, isn't he? It's about the mission, Frank. First and foremost. We all understood that, going in."

"Thank you, Jody," Cas said quietly. But he felt awful now.

Gail touched his face. Then she started to feel his beard. "I was wondering how this would feel," she said to him.

"And? How does it feel?" he asked.

"Requires further investigation, I think," she said, and she leaned forward to kiss him. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her tenderly.

"It tickles," she said, smiling again.

"I've missed you so much," Cas told her. "We won't be apart again for the remainder of the mission, I promise you. I should have just done this in the first place and ignored what anyone else might think."

"Is the Governor budging at all, Cas?" Jody asked him.

He frowned. "No. And if any of you know your Bible, you'll know that it isn't without precedent."

"I don't know about the Bible, but I'm familiar with the movie," Frank said. "And I know what had to be done at the end, before the Pharaoh finally gave in. Are you really prepared to go that far, Cas?"

Cas winced. "I have to be, Frank. But I'm an excellent poker player for a reason. I believe that he will back down before that point."

"I sure hope you're right, Cas," Frank said soberly.

Gail said nothing, but she knew what they were talking about, of course. Death of the first-born in every family. Could they really do that? Should they? At what point did they draw the line? But if this was the only way to rid mankind of Lucifer, weren't they more or less obligated to do it, in terms of the bigger picture?

She moved forward, nestling herself against Cas. He put his arms around her and held her, and they watched the scenery go by.

Sure enough, there were reports on the news that evening that many Egyptian men had now contracted boils and open sores on their bodies, and the lineups at the doctors' offices and pharmacies were growing long. Thankfully, the women had been spared.

Frank was the only one of their number who had been thus afflicted, and he continued to shift uncomfortably in his chair as they watched the news. The palace had many rooms, but they had all congregated here together. It was good to be reunited, and even though they all had to act formally around Cas still, he was right there with them. He had told his staff to attend to any needs his guests may have, as if they were tending to the Sheikh himself.

Ibrahim had been standing by the door, and he cleared his throat now.

"Yes, Ibrahim?" Cas asked him.

"I have some liniment which may provide some relief to your guest," Ibrahim said.

"Well then, by all means, let's have it," Cas said. Ibrahim left the room. He came back a few minutes later with a tube of cream in his hand.

"If you will go upstairs to your room, I will be up in a moment to administer the cream," Ibrahim said to Frank.

Frank gave him a look, then snatched the tube out of his hand. "It's OK. I think this is something I can handle myself," he told the manservant.

Ibrahim shrugged. "As you wish."

Dean was smirking. "Are you sure, Frank? Getting to those hard-to-reach places can be a real bitch, sometimes."

Ibrahim gasped audibly, and Cas glared at Dean. "You will not use such language in front of ladies," he admonished his friend. "It is rude, and vulgar."

Dean rolled his eyes. Right. Cas was in character. So according to Egyptian standards, you could treat women like crap, make them cover up every inch of their bodies in hundred-degree heat, and order them around, but God forbid you should use slightly off-colour language around them. This Ibrahim guy had actually called Gail an American whore, and he had physically knocked her to the ground. Dean couldn't wait to get out of this place. He may be far from perfect, but at least he was able to treat a woman with respect.

Gail looked at Dean. She was pretty much thinking along the same lines. She was currently sitting next to Jody on the loveseat. She wouldn't be able to sit next to Cas, of course. But Cas had advised his staff that since she and Jody were Americans, they would not be required to keep their faces covered in his home. So, at least there was that. The palace didn't have any air conditioning, but it did actually feel cooler here, and there were no flies or dead animals, so there was no smell. They all had their own spacious bedrooms, and she had actually been able to take a shower when they got here. Now, this was how the other half lived.

The news reporters had figured out the connection between the Plagues and what the city was undergoing now, and even though the Governor had scoffed at the parallels, saying that all the events could be logically explained away, the alarmists were starting to weigh in.

"According to the Bible, we can look forward to thunderstorms of hail and fire, as early as tomorrow," one of the reporters said in a half-amused tone. "Sounds like a job for the weather desk."

Cas picked up the remote and shut off the TV. "Dinner is being served, for whoever is hungry," he said to his friends. "I will take a walk around the grounds for a while."

The humans exchanged glances. They could certainly go for something to eat and drink. It was a lot easier to have an appetite when you weren't baking in hundred-degree heat and dealing with swarms of flies and the constant smell of dead animals.

Frank winced as he rose. "You guys go ahead," he said to Dean and Jody. "I think I'd better do a little application, first." He waggled the tube of liniment.

Bobby and the Angels all looked at each other. Was it going to seem peculiar if none of them went to dinner? "I'll see you there in a few minutes," Bobby told them. He wanted to talk to Cas, anyway.

Gail was torn. She didn't really want to go to the dining room and just sit around, but she didn't know how it would look if she went out to the grounds with Cas.

"Can I interest you both in a tour of the grounds?" Cas said to her and Bobby. "I have a beautiful rose garden."

Gail smiled. Just like that, he had solved her dilemma. And since Bobby would be coming with them as a chaperone, it was perfect.

Dean poured himself a huge glass of cold water. It was funny how you never realized how much you missed something until you didn't have it any more. And there was something else: Dean had had almost zero alcohol since they'd been here. He'd indulged in a few of the local drinks the first night they'd gotten here, but he'd found that it was just too damn hot here to drink a lot of booze. You could never get a buzz on anyway, because you sweated it out right away. And once Dean had seen the political climate here, he'd figured he had better keep his wits about him. Those guys with the submachine guns looked like they meant business, and sooner or later, one of them was going to say or do something to really piss one of those guys off. And now that Cas had unleashed the Plagues on the city, Dean had the feeling that there was going to be a big showdown soon.

He wondered what Sam was finding out at the museum. Hopefully, something that would speed the process up.

Sam was making a few discoveries at the museum, but they had very little to do with books.

Rowena had kept the doors locked ever since Jasmina's father had left, and she had several of her special scarves draped over the lamps on the table. There was no way that she was getting rejected again today.

She let him in and led him to the library table, excusing herself for a moment. She brought out a book on the discovery of the original tomb, inviting him to leaf through it. There was nothing unique about the book at all, and certainly no new ground to be covered. But she was stalling for time, letting him breathe in the spell that the scarves were casting.

"Can I get you anything?" Jasmina asked him softly.

"No, I'm fine," Sam told her. He began flipping through the pages of the book. It looked interesting enough, but he couldn't really see anything new or innovative in it.

"What did you really want to show me?" Sam asked her. He noticed now that she had beautiful brown eyes. Just like Gail's. And she was a gorgeous, shapely woman.

"Here," Jasmina said. She walked around the table and leaned over his shoulder, putting her hand on his. "Allow me to make a confession," she said, putting her other hand lightly on his shoulder. Her cleavage was at his eye level, and she had stuffed another scarf down there, just for good measure. "I just wanted to be alone with you," she told him.

Sam couldn't help but stare. Jasmina sat on his lap, and he put his arms around her. She leaned down and kissed him. "You're a handsome, intelligent man," she said. "We Egyptian women have our appetites too, but we're expected to be demure and subservient, and wait for the man to take the lead."

"I can do that," Sam said, and he tore open the front of her gown and buried his face in her breasts. Rowena smiled.

Then Sam undid his pants and lifted her up, onto the library table. What the hell was he doing? This wasn't like him at all. But Jasmina was smiling, and she said, "I've always wanted to do this here." She got onto her hands and knees. "Take me, Sam."

He climbed up on the table and got behind her, still wondering what the hell he was doing. But she smelled so good, and she looked so hot that way. She grabbed him and guided him into her, and he pushed forward, hard. After a moment or two, she began to yell, and he grabbed her by the hair and thrust himself even deeper into her. Rowena was still smiling. She grabbed one of his hands and brought it to herself, using his long fingers to stroke her there. She cried out again. It had been way too long since she'd had it like this.

Sam finished, and then he came to his senses a little. She must be uncomfortable in this position. He took his hand out of her hair and withdrew from her. "Come here," he said, turning her around and taking her in his arms. "Are you cold?"

Rowena rolled her eyes. Here it came. Touchy-feely, call-you-the-next-day-and-send-you-flowers Sam Winchester. She had just been getting warmed up, and now he wanted to cuddle. Now she remembered why he hadn't been near the top of her list.

But at least he had taken the edge off, and she had finally gotten a little relief. And now that she had the field narrowed, Rowena knew who it would have to be.

Sam was back with them at the palace now. He'd called Dean's cell, and Cas had sent one of the cars to the museum to pick him up. Sam had eaten ravenously but silently, and he had been reticent about his visit to the museum. He'd merely said that Jasmina's discovery had not amounted to anything they didn't already know, and that had been it.

Bobby had accompanied Cas and Gail out to the rose garden, and once they were out of earshot of the house staff, he asked Cas how he had managed to pull off the Plagues. Cas admitted to Bobby and Gail that Crowley had helped him with the first one, but the Governor was right: everything after that had pretty much just been nature, taking its course.

"He did provide us with some more healthy animals, too," Cas told them. It turns out that Crowley can conjure animals, Gail can make them attack, and I can tame them. Those are some of the complementary powers our Father gave us."

"How are you going to make it rain hail and fire?" Bobby asked Cas. He had given up on pretending that he was in charge here. This was Cas's show.

"It turns out that one of my Original powers is control of the weather, to a certain extent," Cas told them. He absently took Gail's hand. "It's ironic, really. All of those times in the past that I thought the weather was affecting my mood, and it turns out it was the other way around."

"I don't suppose you could lower the temperature here a couple of thousand degrees then, could you?" Gail said sardonically.

Cas smiled grimly. "You know that I would do that for you, if I could. But we have to stick with the program, as the saying goes."

Gail nodded. So, they could look forward to seeing hail and fire rain down from the skies tomorrow. God, she hoped this Governor guy would cave soon. He would have to after that happened, wouldn't he?

At dawn, the dark clouds gathered and the hail began to fall. The occasional fireball shot out from the clouds, destroying some of the buildings in town. Cas tried to make sure that the buildings that were obliterated had been deserted, for the most part. But he'd made a point to have the hotel where Gail had been staying completely destroyed. Those people did not deserve to own a business. They had abandoned their guests to squalid conditions and allowed them to be terrorized. The managers had all been men, and they were all cowards. At the very least, they should have made sure that the women were taken care of before they had just left everyone to their fates.

He turned to his friends. "I am going to see the Governor this morning. Hopefully, this will finally convince him. Stay here in the palace, and no harm will befall you. My staff have been instructed to attend to any needs you may have." And then, he was gone.

Then Cas was in the Governor's office. The secretary did not even try to stop him this time, nor did she even buzz her boss. She herself was absolutely convinced that the Sheikh was who he said he was, and she was terrified of him. She knew that her employer would not care about her opinion, but if he were to ask her for it, she would tell him to give in to the man now, before he carried out the last of the Plagues. The Governor's daughter was an only child, or had he forgotten? Or worse, was he prepared to sacrifice her, to stand on his precious principles? Well, she for one wasn't going to stick around and find out. She had her bags packed and sitting at home, and she was going to take her twin boys and get out of town tonight. Her husband was out of town on business, and she'd left him a message to expect his family's arrival later tonight.

"Are you ready to capitulate?" Cas said to the Governor.

The politician looked at him coolly. "I did not see you on my list of appointments for today."

Cas concentrated, and he brought down a fireball on the building across the street. He'd taken a quick glance before coming upstairs and he had noticed that particular building was up for lease, so it was likely to be unoccupied. But he needed to get through to this man somehow.

The Governor's secretary screamed. "I quit!" she told her boss. She ran out to her desk and got her purse. No job was worth this.

"I have to admit, that was fairly impressive," the Governor said to Cas. "But I remain unconvinced."

"Your people are suffering!" Cas exclaimed. "Don't you care?"

"Aren't they your people too, supposedly?" the Governor shot back.

"I am not their leader!" Cas thundered. "I am not the one they look to for help and guidance, who does a two-minute sound bite every night assuring them that everything is all right!"

"Oh, but everything IS all right," the Governor said. "Your game is nearly at an end."

"Really?" Cas said, snorting with derision. "No, it is YOU who is nearly at an end. Your people will rebel against you. And your daughter is an only child, is she not?" The Governor looked at him sharply but said nothing.

Cas let out a frustrated breath and swept out of the office. He was going to remain stubborn until the bitter end, Cas knew that now. What was he going to do? Crowley was right; he would have no credibility at all if he blinked before the Governor did, and if they couldn't get into those chambers, they couldn't get the Tablet. And it didn't matter how many Angels could overpower the guards and wink themselves into the chambers, because they needed a human to touch the Tablet and transport it out of the dig site. That had been the whole point of attempting to assimilate in the first place. But Cas had painted himself into a corner now. He had gotten so carried away with the role that he was playing, thinking that the Governor was going to care about his peoples' well-being, that Cas had never allowed himself to believe that things would progress this far.

But the next day, it was time for the locusts to come, and the townspeople had had enough. They began making angry phone calls and posting threats online, until the city became so heavy with the bugs that the telephone and Internet services were blocked out. People barricaded themselves into their homes and hunkered down for the rest of the day, and so did the Governor.

He knew the people were fed up, but he was sure that everything would come to a screeching halt tomorrow, when the so-called Sheikh was unsuccessful in causing 3 consecutive days of total darkness. There was no way the Governor could see that happening. He didn't care how many parlour tricks this man thought he had. No human could do what was supposed to happen next.

And he was right, of course. No human could do that. But three Originals could. Just before sunrise the day after the day of the locusts, Castiel, Crowley and Gail stood on the highest hill above town and combined their blades in the same manner as Cas and Crowley had done that first day. The blue, red and gold auras came out of their blades and Crowley instructed the Angels to lift their blade hands high, almost as if they were conducting the crescendo to a grand symphony. Then, when enough of a glow had been produced from all three of their blades, Crowley directed them to put their blades away. Then all three of them plunged their hands into the glowing ball and flung it towards the city, as if throwing a blanket over a statue.

Everything went pitch dark in the city, and the stars in the sky winked out. The sun was out now, but their blanket covered it. Everything was totally dark, as had been described in the Bible. "They'll be able to feel that, soon," Crowley said quietly. "It'll be oppressive, and it'll be suffocating. If this doesn't do it, nothing will." He deliberately didn't mention the last Plague. They were so close to the end now. One way or the other.

Gail spoke the Enochian word to her blade to get enough light for them to see by. "So, three days of pitch dark," she said. "Well, at least I have this, so I can grope my way around the palace," she quipped.

"It's too bad the two of you aren't married yet," Crowley smirked. "You could make some great use of those three days in the dark."

But that was all he said. Gail was amazed. For a guy who was normally fairly disgusting, Crowley was almost behaving like a decent individual these days. Even Dean might have come up with something more crude, probably.

"Call me if he folds," Crowley said to Castiel. Then he snapped himself away.

Silence for a moment. "He's not going to fold, is he?" Gail asked Cas quietly.

"He may, still," Cas said, but his voice was toneless. "This is just the first morning."

"He's not going to fold, is he, Cas?" she repeated.

Cas frowned. "No. I don't believe he is."

"So you're really going to do it?" she asked him. "You're really going to kill every first-born child in Luxor?"

"What would you have me do, Gail? You've seen enough high-stakes poker games to know that when you go all in, you're all in," Cas said wearily. "If I walk away from the table, we might as well just hand the Earth to Lucifer right now."

"I don't recall ever seeing anyone lose their lives at the poker table, just their money," she retorted.

"Fine," he said shortly. "And what is your solution?"

"Maybe let's not kill one-third of the city's population, for starters," she said tartly.

"And your alternative is...?" Cas asked her quietly. But Gail was silent. She had no alternative.

"It's very easy to be critical when the responsibility does not rest with you," he told her coolly. "And it's very easy to state what you do NOT want to see happen, without being able to suggest a realistic alternative. I don't want to kill any of the people of Luxor, Gail. But I also don't want to offer the rest of humanity up to Lucifer on a silver platter, either. You said you understood the mission. I trust you can find your way back to the palace."

Then Cas disappeared.

Gail stood there for a while, thinking. Crowley had been right; the darkness was so pervasive that she could almost feel it, like a heavy coat on her shoulders.

Cas was right. Once you were all in, you had to be all in. Besides, the Governor might still fold. After more than a day of this, the people were going to be calling for his blood. Everyone knew what was supposed to come next.

Cas was wrong. How could they just be okay with killing off the first-born of each family in town? Would Crowley send his Demons in to do the job? Would he lead the charge? Or, worse, would Castiel ride alongside his Brother, wielding his own sword? How could they live with themselves if they took it that far? What made the lives of the people of Luxor any less precious than those of the rest of humanity? Statistically, she supposed it was for the greater good, but where did they draw the line? What made Cas so sure that they wouldn't just be doing Lucifer's work for him, if they allowed it to escalate to that point?

But maybe it was Gail who was wrong. She was a newer Angel, a younger upstart, really. God had given her a few extra talents and uplifted her status because He had liked her, and because she was His favourite Son's chosen mate. But did that really entitle her to have a say? This was the Devil they were trying to defeat. He and Castiel and Crowley were as old as Creation itself, and they were using the ancient ways to have their fight. Maybe she should just admit that there were a lot of things she didn't know, and that she wasn't an Alpha. She was clearly out of her element now, and it had nothing to do with womens' rights any more. It was an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth, and she needed to step out of the way and let the real players finish the game.

Gail stayed a minute or two longer, saying a quick prayer to their Father that Cas would know the right thing to do when the time came. Then she winked herself back to the palace.


	5. Black Angels

Chapter 5 - Black Angels

As soon as Gail winked herself back into her room, she saw that there were a number of lit candles strategically placed around the room, enough for her to see by, but not so many as to make the room too warm. So she shut the light on the blade off and set the knife on her nightstand.

She started to undress, and then she noticed that there was a red rose on the bed with a note that said: "I'm sorry."

Gail smiled thinly. "I'm sorry, too," she murmured. Cas stepped out from the washroom, where he'd been standing, watching to see her reaction. "I thought about waiting outside in the hallway, but I was afraid you might not let me in, if I knocked."

She looked at him. He was dressed in jeans and a shirt, and even though he still had the beard, he looked more like himself than he'd looked in a long time.

"I don't know. Are you sure you want to be seen hanging around the room of an American whore?" she said coolly. "What would Ibrahim say?"

"Please, Gail," Cas said to her. "We came here on a mission together, to defeat Lucifer. Or at least, to take the first step towards doing so. We mustn't lose sight of that. That's the goal. That is what we must accomplish. All of the other extraneous things are not important right now."

Right. Extraneous stuff. Like killing thousands of people. Like her feelings.

"You know what, Cas? Maybe I'm not cut out for this," Gail said wearily. "Here I've been, blathering on about equality, and I don't have the balls to play with the big boys, either literally or figuratively. You were right. I don't have to make any of the hard decisions."

He smiled faintly, trying to cheer her. "Well, I, for one, am glad you don't have those."

Gail looked at him, sighing. "I appreciate your trying, Cas, but I'm being serious here. I don't know, I really don't know how to feel about what you're about to do to these people. Am I being a hypocrite? Or are you being a monster?"

"Both," he said quietly. "And, neither." He reached out for her hand. "Will you sit with me?"

They sat on the bed in her room and Cas stared at her a moment before saying, "I knew that this was going to be really hard on you. I'm pretty sure our Father gave us this Tablet first, as a test. He wants to see what we'll do when called upon to make the hard decisions. And I think He deliberately arranged this test before the wedding, to see if we could make the right decision together, and to see if our relationship would survive it."

Gail said nothing. She really couldn't argue with his logic. If she could ever presume to know the way God thought, that sounded exactly like something He would do.

"So the question is, can we agree on a decision together that we can both live with?" Cas asked her, taking her hands in his.

"Cas, I don't feel capable of making a decision like that," she told him miserably.

"OK, how about this? If you feel I'm wrong, I won't go through with it," Cas told her.

"But that's just the problem," Gail said. "I can't say that you're wrong, Cas, because I'm not one hundred percent sure that you are."

They regarded each other soberly for a minute. "He may still capitulate," Cas told her.

Gail nodded. "You're right, Cas, He might. There's a reason you were so successful at the high-stakes tables. And there's a reason that I was so uncomfortable there."

He squeezed her hands. "We will decide together, if and when the time comes. We have committed ourselves to each other, and we will support each other, no matter what may come. Agreed?"

Gail sighed again. "Agreed."

Cas put his arms around her waist and kissed her on the mouth, and she kissed him back. "You look beautiful in the candlelight," he told her. "You always have."

"Way to find the silver lining," she quipped. "Now kiss me one more time and then get out of here, before the wrong person finds you here."

He smiled. "It's my palace; I can do what I want," he said softly. Then he kissed her again.

"Oh, no, you can't," Gail said, after they came up for air. "This is getting way too sexy. We're sitting here on a bed, in case you haven't noticed, and if you truly want to wait until our wedding night, you need to leave, now."

She was right. Cas took a deep breath and then he rose from his seat on the bed, with a bit of difficulty. "Please let my staff know if you need anything," he told her. "And I'll let you know if and when I hear from the Governor." Then he left the room.

It was the third evening of the third day, and Cas had given up hope. He moved to the bell in his room, intending to grab it and summon Ibrahim.

Suddenly, the telephone on his nightstand rang, and he rushed to answer it.

It was the Governor. "Come to my office," he said. "We will speak."

Cas felt a thrill of excitement. He was going to give in!

"I agree to meet with you alone, but I will have one other person there," the Governor said enigmatically. "You are entitled to have someone at the meeting too, if you wish. But make sure that it is someone you can trust. The fate of many people will hinge on what is discussed here tonight."

Then the Governor hung up the phone, and Cas stared at the receiver for a moment. What exactly had he meant by that? He could see the sense in wanting each side to have a witness to their discussion, but that last remark had concerned him. That didn't exactly sound to him like someone who was ready to give in.

Cas gathered all of his houseguests in one room and dismissed his staff from earshot. He told them about the Governor's call, and they all reacted happily. But a part of Cas was still quite leery.

"He has asked me to come alone," Cas told them. "If you'll all please stay here, I'll let you know what the plan is, upon my return."

Then Cas went downstairs and had the car brought around. "You will stay here and look after my guests," Cas told Ibrahim. "I will be back shortly."

The car started to move, and Castiel thought Crowley's name. His Brother appeared immediately, sitting opposite of him in the back of the limousine. Castiel told him about the Governor's call, and Crowley lifted an eyebrow. He thought that it was a little peculiar, as well. Apparently, the man still thought that he was in a position to negotiate.

When they walked into the Governor's office, the politician rose from his chair and came around the desk to greet them. He did not extend his hand, but he did nod to them in acknowledgement. "Have a seat, gentlemen," the Governor said. "My daughter is preparing refreshments for us."

"Your daughter?" Cas said in surprise.

"Yes, she is a very educated and knowledgeable Egyptologist, and she told me she has already had the pleasure of meeting you," the Governor said to him. He gestured to the chairs in front of his desk. "Sit. Please."

Crowley and Cas exchanged glances, but they sat, and the Governor returned to the chair behind his desk. A moment later, Rowena came in the room bearing a tray with coffee cups and a decanter. She set it on the table beside the desk. And just in time, too. As soon as she'd walked in the room and seen her son, she'd felt like she was going to drop the tray. Of all the people she might have expected to see here with Castiel today, Fergus would not have even been in the Top Ten.

"Coffee, gentlemen?" she said.

"I'll have some," the Governor said. Cas waved her off. "Any chance of anything stronger?" Crowley said hopefully.

The Governor looked at him. A British man? Who was he, and what was his connection to all of this? "You will not find coffee any stronger than ours in the entire nation," he told Crowley proudly.

"I think he means alcohol, Father," Rowena said, bringing the Governor his coffee.

The Governor frowned at Crowley, and the King of Hell shrugged. You couldn't blame a fellow for trying.

"If you invited your daughter here today in order to elicit my sympathy, you have failed," Cas said to the Governor in a sharp tone.

"Not at all," the politician said. "I invited her here today because of her expertise in Egyptian history. She has been doing research on you and your lineage, and I asked her here this evening to render her opinion on whether or not you actually are who you say you are."

"I don't know how you can doubt my veracity," Cas shot back. He gestured to the windows with his hand. "Look at the condition of your city."

"Every phenomena that have occurred can be explained away by science, and logic," the Governor pointed out calmly.

Cas was starting to panic now, but he was becoming angry, too. He slammed his hand on the Governor's desk, and Rowena jumped involuntarily. "How can you be so obstinate?!" he shouted. "Your people will die! Your own daughter will die!"

The Governor sat back in his chair. "You can send in your assassins," he said coolly, "but let us see how they fare against my army. They have machine guns."

Crowley leaned forward. "Do you really think those pieces of tin are going to make any difference? You have no idea what you're dealing with here. None."

Rowena was staring at him and Castiel. She almost should align herself with these two, now. Lucifer was a whining, petulant child. These men were the real Alphas here. If she thought that things could be like this all of the time, she would happily switch sides right now. But as soon as this temporary alliance was done, Rowena knew that Castiel and Crowley would go back to their bickering ways, and her son would go back to helping Gail work on that necklace of hers, the one with all of the mens' bollocks on it.

"Yes, we do," she spoke up. "It is you two who have no idea who you are dealing with." And she wasn't thinking of the Governor. She turned to him now. "He is an impostor, Father. There is absolutely no evidence to suggest that this man is a member of the royal family. That bloodline died out centuries ago, and this man and his friends are only here to get their hands on our treasures."

Cas's heart sank, but he tried to brazen it out. "You are a liar," he said in a clipped voice.

"No, you are the liar," the Governor said. "Now get out of my office."

Cas and Crowley stood and walked towards the door.

"Wait," the Governor said. They turned back around.

"On the off chance that any of my people are discovered murdered tomorrow, I would advise you not to try to leave town, as you will face criminal prosecution in the morning," he told them.

Cas frowned. "No, I will remain in town, because you will be opening those chambers for me the day after tomorrow," he said coldly. Then he and Crowley left the office.

"He will not budge," Cas said to his friends back at the palace. "We will have no choice but to proceed."

They all looked at each other. Had it really come to this? Since when had the good guys become the bad guys?

"Are you OK with that, Bobby?" Sam asked him.

"Not really, but I don't see what other choice we have," Bobby said uncomfortably. "We have to take care of Lucifer, and if those Tablets are the way to do that, we have to look at the bigger picture, here."

"Doesn't doing this sort of thing make US Lucifer, in a way?" Chuck asked pointedly.

Crowley looked at him. "That's rich, coming from you."

"Look, Crowley, we all know I used to be a bad guy," Chuck retorted. "That's old news. But I'm not a bad guy any more, and I don't know how we can just sit by and sanction this sort of thing."

"Some of you won't be here to sanction anything," Cas told them. "In fact, we'd better do this now." He picked up the phone and asked for all the house staff and the women in the harem to come immediately. When they did, he asked which of them were the first-born in their families. A number of them raised their hands. "Prepare my private jet," he said to Ibrahim. "I want those of you who have just identified yourselves to pack, and Ibrahim will take you to the airport immediately. You will be flown to - " He had been about to say Cairo, but then he remembered that was where Lucifer had been when he and Gail had carried out the reverse ritual, and irrationally, he did not want to send them there. "You will be flown to Jerusalem, where you will wait for the all clear," Cas continued. "Then, when you receive it, you can either opt to return, or to continue on your journey. There will be no punishment if you do not opt to come back. Now, go."

Ibrahim looked at the Sheikh, puzzled. Just when he thought he had his employer figured out, the Sheikh continually surprised him. Well, at least he was taking care of his own, for a change. Ibrahim had no doubt that there would be many deaths here tomorrow, but at least now there would be fewer Egyptian deaths. He was torn between feelings of hatred and intense affection for the Sheikh. His employer was a force to be reckoned with, to be sure. As a member of the royal family, one could ask for no finer example, in Ibrahim's opinion. On the other hand, he treated these Americans like his family, and he had brought down death and destruction on his own people. And the worst was yet to come.

"You may go," Cas said, dismissing his staff. Then he turned to his friends. "I will not be doing any of the killing myself, nor will Crowley. He is sending a Demon squad into Luxor in the morning, to do what needs to be done."

"I'll have to leave town myself, in fact," Crowley said casually. "I'm the first-born son, and with these ancient Biblical curses, it's best not to take any chances." He gave Cas a taut smile. "Though I daresay a large part of you would enjoy the payback."

"Are you kidding us with this?" Sam said angrily. "So we're just going to let this happen, then? Demons are gonna roll into town and kill people, and we're just going to let them?"

"No way," Dean said. "Cas is bluffing. You're bluffing, aren't you, Cas?"

"Of course he is," Frank said. "There's no way he'd ever do anything like that."

Cas sighed. If that was what they had to tell themselves, he would rather leave it like that. "Well, neither one of you will be here, anyway," he told them. "Frank, Dean, Bobby, Ethan and Kevin will all have to leave. Frank, Dean and Ethan are all the eldest siblings, and Bobby and Kevin are only children. You, Chuck?"

"I have an older sister," Chuck said. "Well, I did have, at least." Funny, he hadn't thought about his sister in years. He'd been such a douche when he was a human that she'd vowed to have nothing to do with him, and she'd kept that promise.

"Sam's all right to stay, of course," Cas continued. "Jody?" he asked.

"I had an older brother, Cas. But he died years ago," she said quietly. Sam and Dean looked at her in surprise. All these years they'd known her, and she'd never mentioned that before. She shrugged. "I'll tell you guys about it sometime," she said to them. Frank put his arm around her for comfort. She'd already told him, and it was a very sad story.

"And Gail's OK to stay too, of course," Cas said. "So, that's everyone. Bobby will take the first-borns back to the States, to wait for us at the bunker. Once the Governor opens the chambers for us, Chuck, Gail and myself will take care of the otherworldly beings, and Sam and Jody will be our human conduits, once the Tablet has been located."

"Sounds good to me," Chuck said, but Dean and Frank were frowning. "Well, it doesn't sound good to us," Dean said irritably. "We came all the way out here, and we don't even get to participate in the heist? What's up with that, Cas?"

"This is not a movie, or a video game," Castiel said testily. "It is serious business, and all of the first-borns need to be far away from here, Dean."

Dean regarded his friend curiously. Now he was beginning to wonder. Was Cas serious about his intention to murder all those people? "Cas, what are you gonna do?" Dean asked him quietly.

"Please make sure everyone is all right at the bunker, and I will do my best to do the same, here," Cas said evasively.

"Are you all right with this?" Dean said to Gail.

She said nothing. What could she say?

"Fine," Dean said shortly. "Let's go, Bobby. I don't wanna hang around and see my best friend turn into Crowley."

Frank embraced Jody. "Go get 'em, Tiger," he said to her. He still didn't believe that Cas would actually let anyone get killed. He'd just said he was going to try to look out after everyone. Dean was just being Dean, and he was being an ass.

There were hugs all around, and the group left for the bunker. Then Cas turned to Sam and Jody. "I'll ask the remaining staff to make you something for supper, and then you'll probably want to get a good night's sleep," he told them. "One way or the other, at the end of the day tomorrow, we're getting into those chambers."

"That's OK, I think we can manage, Sheikh," Sam said coolly, and he and Jody headed off towards the kitchen.

"I'll be heading out, too," Crowley said. "Congratulations, Castiel, for deciding to do the right thing."

"Don't congratulate me. Just go," Cas snapped.

Once Crowley was gone, Chuck looked at Cas and Gail. "Do the two of you want to be alone?" he asked them.

"No, please come for a walk with us," Cas said, taking Gail's hand. "I'd like to talk to you, Chuck."

They walked outside, and Chuck said, "What do you want to talk to me about, Cas?"

"Why were you so angry with me at the museum?" Cas asked him. Gail looked at the men, puzzled. This was the first she was hearing of this.

Chuck sighed. "I don't know, Cas. I just...I just feel so jealous of you, sometimes. I fight it and I fight it, but it just keeps coming back. I know, that's one of the worst Sins. It was feelings like that which prompted me to do all those terrible things in the first place."

"What are you jealous of, Chuck?" Cas asked their friend quietly.

Chuck laughed shortly. "How long have you got? How about your exalted status in Heaven? How about that you have the kind of relationship that most guys would kill for? And I don't care, you can punch me in the face if you want to, but how about the fact that you get more hot sex in one night than I've ever had in my entire, miserable existence? How's that for a start?"

Cas let go of Gail's hand and faced Chuck. "You are not to talk about Gail that way," he said, his voice growing even quieter.

"Hey, you asked," Chuck retorted.

"He's right. You did," Gail quipped, trying to take the edge off the tension between the men. Both of them looked at her. She looked at Chuck. "Chuck, do you want to be my boyfriend?" Gail asked him.

"What?!" Chuck exclaimed. Was she nuts? Cas was going to have a stroke. But first, he was going to chop Chuck into little, tiny pieces.

"Do you want me for yourself, Chuck?" Gail persisted. "Answer honestly."

Cas regarded them both, saying nothing. He was suddenly very interested in hearing the answer to Gail's question.

"No!" Chuck shouted. "No way, Gail! I mean, I love you, but...eww! That's just like thinking about dating your sister, or something!"

"All right, all right, you don't have to be quite THAT adamant about it," she said, rolling her eyes. But she was smiling.

Cas let out a sigh of relief. "So, you don't want WHO I have, you just want WHAT I have," he said to Chuck. "Well, as far as the relationship aspect goes, I completely understand. I've been in existence since Creation, and I had given up hope on ever finding love. I was extremely lucky, Chuck. And I will never let a day go by without thanking our Father for sending Gail into my life." He took her ring hand and kissed it.

"Yeah, well, you always were His favourite," Chuck grumbled.

"What do you want me to say, Chuck?" Cas said. He was starting to get a little irritated now. What DID Chuck want him to say? "Do you want me to assure you that the same thing will happen to you? Well, I can't do that. It may not."

"I understand that, Cas," Chuck said, "and of course I don't expect you to say anything like that. Though it would be nice to at least get laid once in a while." He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, Gail."

She shrugged. "Please. I've heard way worse stuff than that. But it's good to be honest, Chuck. If you let resentments build up inside you without expressing them, it can make you bitter. Believe me, I know."

"OK, then, while we're being so honest, let me tell you something else," Chuck said. "It doesn't matter how many centuries of good I do in Heaven, I will never even come close to achieving the level of respect that Cas has now."

"So you want a leadership role in Heaven, do you?" Cas asked Chuck in his quiet tone. Gail looked at him sharply. She recognized that tone. But she was going to keep her mouth shut for now, because she thought that the men should hash this out.

"Maybe I do, Cas," Chuck replied.

"Fine," Cas said, pursing his lips. "Perhaps you'd like to start with making the type of decision that has to be made tomorrow morning and see how that sits on your shoulders. Perhaps you would like to be forced to align yourself with the King of Hell, while alienating your family and friends. And maybe you'd like to look into the eyes of the one person that you love most in the entire universe and see the disappointment there, all day, every day. Would you enjoy that, Chuck?"

"Cas," Gail said miserably. Tears sprang to her eyes. "If I've been looking at you that way, I apologize. I know things are hard enough on you, as it is."

"It's not your fault," he told her, touching her face. "Of course you're disappointed in me. I'm disappointed in myself. But it's too late. Even if I stood down now, Crowley has told me that he intends to proceed. He said that we have to think of the greater good, and he is right. But if he takes the decision out of my hands, I'll be no less culpable. I'm the one who set this whole thing in motion."

"We'll all share the responsibility, Cas," Chuck said. "That's what families do. That is, if you'll still let me be a member of the family after what I said. I'm sorry, Cas. You're right. I wouldn't want to have to shoulder the kind of responsibility that you do."

"Group hug?" Gail suggested, and she pulled Chuck towards her and Cas. The three of them embraced for a moment, and then Cas said, "Do you know how to play cards, Chuck? It's going to be a very long night."

The screaming began early the next morning. Crowley had wasted no time. His Demon squad had arrived in town at dawn and began moving from house to house, carrying out their gruesome assignment. They did so quietly and efficiently, without any show of emotion. Crowley had instructed them as such. Anyone seen showing any sort of joy or mirth about what they were doing would be taken directly to Hell's torture chamber. So they went about their business silently and swiftly, marking each door with a big black "X" after they were done there.

The Governor had deployed his army of course, and the men shot at the assassins, multiple times. But those salvos barely even slowed them down. After a couple of those types of incidents, the Demons had begun to toss the militia men around like ragdolls and bend their guns into pretzels. The rest of the army men retreated upon seeing this. There were definitely supernatural forces at work here, and civilian life was suddenly looking very good to them.

The bodies piled up as the day went on, and the cries of anguish became louder and louder. Cas sat on the front steps of the palace, making himself listen. He would hear those cries echoing in his ears for the rest of his existence. The others were inside the palace, dealing with the situation in their own ways. Sam was cursing and punching the walls, and he had been threatening to go down to the city all day, but he had not. He realized how ultimately futile that would be. Jody and Chuck were sitting in the living room, grim-faced but tight-lipped. Gail had retreated to her room after a few minutes of hearing the cries, slamming and locking the door behind her.

A hooded figure came walking up the driveway, and Cas stood, peering at the figure.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" he called out.

Silence. The individual continued to advance, and though he could still not make out the face under the hood, Cas now noticed that there was an Angel blade in the entity's hand.

He ran down the steps to confront the individual. "Who are you?" he demanded again.

The man reached up and removed the hood from his head. "Just another worker bee, Castiel, here to do a job," he said calmly, continuing to walk towards the house.

Cas was puzzled. He had no idea who or what this individual was, or what they were doing here. This was not one of Crowley's Demons, here for the cull. And every first-born had been sent away from the palace, anyway. But why did this man have an Angel blade in his hand? In any event, if he thought he was getting anywhere near Cas's house, he was crazy.

The man was on the top step now, and Cas stood in front of him. "I will ask you one more time: who are you, and what are you doing here?"

"I am a Reaper, and I'm here to do my job," the man answered him. "The first-born, in every household. Even the royal palace is not exempt. It's all right, Castiel. You only have the one. This won't take long at all." He pushed Cas aside and continued to move down the corridor towards where the living quarters were.

"Why didn't Crowley send a Demon, then?" Cas demanded, trailing after him. "Who are you here to kill?"

"The first-born, of course," the Reaper said. "Death sent me, because this particular death warrants special attention. He was actually amazed that none of you thought of it. Although, to be fair, none of you ever did get around to telling Crowley, did you?"

"What are you talking about?" Cas exclaimed. He was starting to feel dread now. "Stop!" he shouted.

The Reaper was in the guest wing now. Sam was pacing back and forth in the kitchen, and Chuck and Jody were still in the living room. And the Reaper had an Angel blade. "No," Cas whispered.

"You never did get around to telling Crowley that she was adopted, did you?" the Reaper asked him. "You sent Frank away, and quite rightly. He WAS the first-born, to his own parents. But Gail was also the only child her biological parents ever had. Therefore, she is a first-born, too."

"No!" Cas screamed. He took the sword out of his robes, but the Reaper extended his hand, flinging Cas against the wall.

"Nothing personal, Castiel. Just doing my job," the Reaper said. He'd reached Gail's door now. "I'd stay out here, if I were you," he said to Castiel. "You won't want to see this."

Oh, God, my God. This was really going to happen. And all because they'd completely forgotten that Gail and Frank were not actually siblings, related by blood. Because HE had forgotten. And what would be the point of living now?

"Take me, instead," he begged the Reaper.

"You know it doesn't work that way, Castiel," the Reaper said. "But hey, if you're going to invoke an ancient curse, you have to be prepared to live with the consequences, right?"

Cas stared at him, wide-eyed with terror. It was no wonder that he never messed with ancient curses. Biblical retribution was obviously nothing to screw around with.

Biblical. He had an idea. In desperation, he brought the sword down on his own forearm and cut it to ribbons. Then he put his hand on the wounds and smeared the blood all over his palm. He dove past the Reaper, smacking his palm on the door to Gail's room. "You shall not pass," he told the Reaper.

The Reaper looked at him uncertainly. Cas went back for more blood and smeared the door jambs and walls on either side, just for good measure. "You shall not pass!" he repeated.

The Reaper started to smile. "Good one, Cas. Came up with it at the eleventh hour, didn't you?"

Gail had heard the commotion outside in the hallway, and she yanked her door open now. "Cas, what the hell's going - " Her sentence cut off as she saw the man with the Angel blade and Cas with his sword in his hand, looking panicked and bloody.

"You win this round," the Reaper said, and he put the Angel blade away, sauntering down the hall. Cas could almost swear he heard him whistling.

Cas rushed to Gail and pushed her back into her room, somewhat irrationally bolting the door behind them. "Cas, what's going on?" she asked him again.

He fell to his knees in front of her. "Please forgive me, Gail. Please. I screwed up, so badly." He began to sob.

So that was it. The screaming from town had finally gotten to him, too. Why did he think she had barricaded herself in here all day? But she knew that he had been sitting out front all that time, making himself listen. That was either the stupidest or the noblest this she had ever seen; she wasn't sure which. But she certainly knew which of the two of them was the coward.

She got down on the floor with him when she noticed that his arm was bleeding. "What happened to you?" she asked softly. She grabbed his arm and ran her hand over it, healing his wounds. "Who was that guy, Cas?"

"He was a Reaper," Cas said dazedly. "He was here for you, Gail."

"Me?" she said, shocked. "Why would he have been here for me?"

Cas told her what the Reaper had said, and what had happened just before she'd opened her door. Gail couldn't believe it. "I can't believe none of us thought of that," she said. "Of course I could have been a first-born. I just don't generally think of myself as being adopted. At my age, it doesn't really seem relevant. And Frank is my brother in every way that counts."

"I nearly got you killed, Gail," Cas said miserably. "I'm so sorry."

"Shhh," she said, touching his face. "You're not the only one here who didn't think of that. Besides, that was some pretty quick thinking on your part. The blood of the Lamb, just like in the Bible."

"I remembered that was the way it was done, back then," he told her. "The doorways of those to be spared were marked with lambs' blood, and the killers passed those households over."

They sat there quietly for a minute. There were a lot of houses in the city that had not been passed over today, and that was on their shoulders.

There was a pounding on the door, and Cas got up to answer it. Sam, Chuck and Jody came busting in. "Are you guys all right?" Sam asked them. "We heard yelling, and we saw all the blood in the hall."

"We're fine," Gail confirmed. She and Cas got up off the floor.

"Ibrahim's looking for you," Chuck told Cas. "He said the Governor called. He wants to meet you at the museum, right away."

Cas frowned. So, that was it. One of Crowley's Demon hit squad must be preparing to kill the Governor's daughter, so suddenly, the Governor wanted to negotiate. But really, was Cas any better? He had just let thousands of people die, but he had made sure to rush up here to save his own fiancee, hadn't he?

"All right, let's go," Cas said wearily. He reached out for Sam's hand. Sam looked at him in surprise. "From now on, we stick together," Cas said. Then he and the Angels winked Sam and Jody to the museum.

But to Cas's shock, the Governor was sitting on the floor in the middle of the library, cradling his daughter's dead body in his arms.

"You have won," he said to Cas in a toneless voice, rocking Jasmina's body back and forth. "I have nothing left. I don't care who you are any more. You are nothing but a monster to me. I will remove my guards from the dig site and close the tombs from the public for a day of mourning. Go there, take whatever you want, and then get the hell out of my city."

Sam felt like he was going to vomit. A beautiful, intelligent young woman murdered, just so they could get their hands on a slab of stone? He remembered having been with her here. What they'd done was a bit hazy to him, but he thought it had been very nice, and Sam had been hoping to get her number and see her again when everything had calmed down. Now she was just a statistic. Another casualty.

The unfortunate young woman had been a casualty, but she hadn't been killed by any Demon assassin.

Rowena had known what was going to happen, of course, and there was no way she was going to take any chances. It was time to get the hell out. So she had summoned Lucifer, asking him to bring her own vessel back so she could get out of Jasmina. And, eventually, he had come.

"It took you long enough," she'd snapped. "I'm about to be killed, you know."

"The force field is getting stronger," Lucifer said irritably. He wasn't used to being kept away from anywhere he wanted to go, and it was extremely frustrating to him, to say the least. "I can only stay a minute as it is. Here, jump back in your body and let's go." He put his mouth on Rowena's vessel's mouth and she watched, fascinated, as he breathed in, sucking Jasmina's essence out of Rowena's body. Then Rowena advanced to the floor where her own body lay and exhaled her own essence back into herself, as Lucifer had shown her how to do. What a weird feeling it was to be kneeling here, practically French-kissing yourself. It was a bit of a shame that she couldn't feel the sensations of both bodies at once. If anyone would ever be able to satisfy Rowena, it would be Rowena herself, she thought with some amusement.

Then the swap was made, and Lucifer was feeling the urgency to leave. He grabbed a very confused Jasmina and kissed her, using his tongue. "I really wish I had the time to leave a better calling card," he said to her. "Send your Daddy a message. This is what happens when you put your own ambitions before the well-being of your loved ones." He took out a knife and stabbed her repeatedly in the chest, then dropped her dead body on the library floor. Then he took her cell phone and dialed her father's number, throwing the phone on her chest as it started to ring. Then he'd grabbed Rowena's hand, and they'd teleported out of there.

Cas transported them to the Valley of the Kings, and true to the Governor's word, the place was deserted.

"All right, let's get this done," Cas said wearily.

"Wait," Sam said. "I want Dean here for this."

Cas considered this. He kind of wanted Dean here, as well. Things were eerily quiet here at the moment and having someone else here who was an expert in human weaponry might not be a bad idea.

"And I DON'T want Jody here for this," Gail said.

Jody looked at her. "What?!" she exclaimed.

"If anything happened to you, Frank would kill me," Gail told her. "You guys just got married, and you've got Robbie to think about now. You don't want to run the risk of him losing another mother so soon, do you? We'll have Chuck take you to the bunker, and swap Dean for you."

"Do it, Chuck, please," Cas said.

Chuck grabbed Jody by the hand and winked her out of there. A few minutes later, he was back with Dean.

"Thank you, Chuck," said Cas, moving forward, "and, my apologies." He put his hand on Chuck's forehead and gave him a mighty push, sending him back to the bunker.

The four of them stood there and looked at each other for a moment. Dean had been about to make some kind of a quip, but when he saw the grim expressions on their faces, his throat dried up. He guessed he knew why they looked like that, and why they were here now. Cas had gone through with it. He had actually done it. But, really, what choice had his friend had?

Maybe they would have to talk about it sometime, but right now, Cas was leading the way to the tomb. Dean followed, then Gail, and Sam brought up the rear. It was so strange to be here like this, with no one around. As they descended into King Tut's tomb, the silence was eerie and the dark was oppressive. There was some natural lighting, though, and there were strategically placed torches in sconces on the wall. Gail had thought that they were there for atmosphere only, but now she was extremely glad to see them. The 3 days of darkness was over now, but it still seemed darker than it did before. Or maybe it was just her mood. Their supposed victory was feeling very hollow at the moment.

"Well, if it isn't the reporters, and the Sheikh," one of the armed guards said. "The Governor has instructed us to open the chambers for you before we leave."

"Then do it," Cas said curtly.

"I had an older brother yesterday," the other guard said, taking his weapon off his shoulder.

Cas and Gail withdrew their blades and stepped in front of Sam and Dean. "I would advise you to put your weapons down and leave," Cas said. "We can open the chambers ourselves."

"Believe it or not, we're sorry for your loss. But I would do it, if I were you," Gail said. "You won't be given another warning."

The men glared at them, but they laid their weapons down on the ground. They had seen the ills that had befallen their city at the hands of this man, and whoever or whatever he was, they wanted no part of him.

"Do what you will," one of them said to Cas. "But even if you are not who you claim to be, at least have some respect for whatever you may find."

"We are here for one thing, and one thing only," Cas told them. "We will not touch any of the artifacts, or any remains. You have my word. Now, go."

The men looked at him with puzzled expressions, and then they backed out of the tomb and left.

"Alone at last," Dean said, and he moved forward and picked up one of the guards' weapons, tossing the other one to Sam. "Thanks for the upgrade, fellas."

"Now what?" Sam said. "I hate to tell you this, Cas, but I don't see any entry point there, only a solid wall."

"I have an app for that," Gail said. "Stand back, guys." She pointed her blade at the wall and said the Enochian phrase, and the golden laser point of light came out of her blade and made a hole in the wall. "Now we can see in there, and if it's a chamber, I can cut a hole in the wall that will enable us to get in. And the beauty is, it's self-repairing."

"That's pretty impressive," Sam said.

Dean was the closest, so after Gail did her thing, he looked in the peephole. "Looks like a chamber to me," he said.

"Is there anything in the room?" Cas asked him.

Dean looked at him, then looked through the peephole again. "A couple of large boxes, a few statues, and... son of a bitch!" he said.

"What?" Sam asked.

"Snakes," Dean moaned.

"Snakes? What kind of snakes?" Cas asked.

"How the hell should I know?" Dean said irritably. "Snakes! After everything that's gone on here, does it really matter?"

Cas supposed Dean had a point. Besides, it shouldn't matter. Even if they turned out to be venomous, Cas should be able to keep them calm. The large boxes intrigued him, though. The Tablet could very well be in one of those. He nodded to Gail. "Go ahead, when you're ready."

She concentrated, then pointed her blade at the wall and started to cut a hole in it with the golden beam of light. She cut out a large rectangle, then put her blade down.

"What now?" Dean said.

Gail shrugged. "I don't know, actually. We never got this far before." She looked at Cas. "Maybe you guys should try pushing on it."

All three men moved forward and pushed on the wall, and it swung forward, like a door on hinges.

"Cool," Gail breathed.

They entered the chamber slowly, cautiously. "Where did you see the snakes, Dean?" Cas asked him.

"There," Dean said, pointing at the floor in front of a large rectangular box. About a dozen snakes were slithering around there. As they approached, the snakes rose up off the floor and coiled themselves into striking position.

"Be calm," Cas said to the snakes.

"Or don't be, maybe," Gail's voice said nervously, from behind him.

Cas turned around, curious as to what she might have meant by that. He was alarmed to see six Bedouin men entering the chamber, carrying automatic weapons. "Who are you?" Cas asked them. "What are you doing here?"

"We're here to get whatever treasures there are here," one of the men said in an angry voice. "The government has taken all of our land, and now we're going to take something back for ourselves."

"We're not here for any treasure," Sam said, putting his hands up. "We're only here to get a stone Tablet, that's all. Just let us take that, and we'll leave you to it."

"A stone tablet?" the Bedouin asked. "And, what would that be? Some kind of ancient artifact?"

"Yes," Cas said, "but it is of no monetary value."

"Really?" The man smiled. "Then why would you want it?"

"Sentimental reasons?" Dean quipped.

"Very amusing," the Bedouin said. "Now give us your weapons and get on your knees." He looked at Gail. "You do not have to do so. But we may reserve the pleasure of searching you for weapons, after we execute your companions."

"I don't think so," Gail retorted. She pointed both of her arms at the snakes. "Kill them," she said, and the golden glow came from her fingertips. She flicked her fingers towards the Bedouins, and the snakes flew at the mens' faces. They wrapped themselves around the mens' necks and bit them, again and again, as the victims screamed. Soon, all of the men slumped to the floor, dead.

"Another weapons upgrade, guys," Gail said to Sam and Dean. They looked at her, and then at each other, and then back at her. "Now THAT was cool," Dean said, impressed. Gail shrugged. "Hey, they were about to kill you. And if you think 'searching me for weapons' was what they really had in mind, you're kidding yourselves."

But Cas was frowning. She was right, of course, but he hated to see her this way. This hard edge didn't become her. However, they needed to take care of business right now, and they needed to keep Dean and Sam alive while they were doing it. He leaned down and checked the bodies of the Bedouins. Yes, they were all dead, all right. "Go outside the chamber," he told the snakes, and they began to slither out. "Guard the entrance," Gail added, telling the snakes, "Kill anyone who tries to enter."

Cas gave her another sharp look, but then he reconsidered. Who was he kidding? Look at everything he had done leading up to this moment. She was just trying to protect them. Following his example. Oh, God. Cas was turning Gail into himself. Ever since the day that Cas had met Gail, she had slowly been making him into a better Angel, and a better man. But was he now dragging her down to the level he'd been at before he had met her? The days of Jason and the Angel Wars, when the end always seemed to justify the means, and he could kill without any pangs of conscience whatsoever? What was happening to them?

Sam and Dean were silently divesting the Bedouins of their weapons. "Sam, Dean," Cas said quietly. "Can you help me remove the top of this box? Perhaps the Tablet is inside."

The three men used all their muscle to ease the heavy stone cover off the box. It fell to the side, and a huge cloud of dust puffed out of the box. Once it had settled, they all looked down into the box.

"Canopic jars," Cas said. "So there really is someone buried here. What a find this will be."

"Well, you'll forgive us if we don't do cartwheels," Dean said grumpily. "Where's the damn Tablet, already?"

"It must be in the second chamber," Cas replied.

"And where might that be?" Sam asked.

"Gail can use her blade to look around for it," Cas said.

"I don't think that'll be necessary, Cas," Gail said, pointing to the statues. "I think all we have to do is follow them."

The statues were moving across the floor by themselves, and when they got to the opposite wall, they lined themselves up against the wall and began to grow in size.

"Anubis," Cas said. "Protectors of the dead."

Sam, Dean and Gail looked up at the statues, astonished. The sculptures had come to life now. They'd also grown to a height of about eight feet, and they had the bodies of men, but the heads of large dogs. They all held staffs in one hand and stood at attention. They stared balefully at the quartet. While not behaving aggressively at the moment, it didn't appear as if they were prepared to move away from the wall, either.

"What are we going to do, Cas?" Gail said quietly. "How are we supposed to get past them?"

"The Weighing of the Heart," Sam said quickly, and Cas looked at him sharply. "How do you know about that, Sam?"

"It was on the bricks we looked at, at the library," Sam replied. "It comes from the Book of the Dead. According to the lore, one of Anubis's responsibilities was deciding whether people were ready to enter the underworld. He did that by performing a ritual called the Weighing of the Heart. The person's heart was assessed to see if it was pure and true, and if it was deemed to be insufficient or lacking, it would be given to Ammit, a female Demon, to devour, causing the person to die over and over again."

Cas was extremely impressed. Sam hadn't had that much time to study the bricks, and he had gotten all that in such a short period?

"I also Googled some of that, Cas," Sam said, grinning sheepishly.

"Remember that," Cas said to him, clapping him on the shoulder. "That's the kind of honesty you'll want to be using on Anubis."

The two men smiled at each other as Dean and Gail exchanged puzzled glances. "I miss the good old days, when Sammy and I used to talk, and it was Cas who had no idea what WE were talking about," Dean grumbled.

"We've figured out a way to get the statues to move out of the way for us," Cas told Gail and Dean.

"We'll all have to approach them individually, one statue per person," Sam said. "And, we'll have to tell them a truth about ourselves, from the heart. If the statue deems our heart to be pure enough, it'll move out of the way."

"Are you freakin' kidding me with this?" Dean said skeptically.

Sam looked at his brother patiently. "Can you honestly stand there and say that you haven't done anything this weird before, Dean?"

Dean thought about that for a minute. Sam did have a point there.

"Okie-dokie. I might as well start, then," Dean said. He walked up to one of the statues and looked up at it. "Ummmm...what am I supposed to say, exactly?" Dean said to the room in general.

"Just tell it one truth about yourself, from the heart," Sam prompted him.

"OK," Dean said. "OK. I can do that." He looked up at the statue again. "I'm afraid I might have really blown it with Nicole, after the way I behaved at Frank and Jody's wedding. I really like her, but I acted like an ass to her that night, and I wouldn't blame her if she's washed her hands of me. I'm sure I did that on purpose, because I'm afraid to get too close to a woman again."

His statue bowed and lowered its staff, and it moved away from the wall.

"Your turn, Sammy," Dean said to his brother.

Sam looked up at his statue. Then he glanced around at his companions and took a deep breath. "Everyone always says that out of the two of us, I have the softest heart," Sam began. "But I know that's not true. I think there's a part of me that's missing. I've been claiming for years that I want a good relationship, with a quality woman, but I just keep having indiscriminate sex, and I never make a commitment to anyone."

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Dean quipped, but Sam held up his hand. "Dean, please. I'm trying to be serious, here. I don't date anyone who's really a viable candidate for a relationship. And the one woman I convinced myself I was in love with was so clearly unavailable that I might as well have put up a big sign: I'm a liar, and I'm a hypocrite."

Gail looked at Sam sympathetically. She felt like he was being too hard on himself. But it was his truth, and it was obviously true enough, because Sam's statue moved off to the side.

Gail stepped up to her statue. "I'm passive-aggressive, though I'm trying very hard not to be," she said without preliminary. "I want the best of both worlds. I walk around like I'm the Queen of Sheba or something, expecting all of these men to do what I say just because I say it. Yet when things get really hard, I just retreat to my room and cry like a baby. I demand to be treated like an equal, but when the real stuff goes down, I let these men protect me with their lives, because I know that they will." She saw her statue move aside through eyes that were blurred with tears. It had been cathartic to say, but it had been very hard to say all of that, too. Hopefully, the guys wouldn't think too much less of her for having told the truth.

Cas stepped forward to his own statue. He looked over at Gail, who was weeping silently. He had been impressed with her unflinching self-analysis. If he were to be very honest with himself, he knew that there was some truth to what she was saying about herself. But it was mainly her truth, from her own viewpoint, and he thought she was being too hard on herself. Cas and the other men did things for Gail because they loved her, and because she was right, the vast majority of the time. She thought she was a coward, but he did not. Look at all of the things she had faced throughout the years. Those ordeals had only served to make her stronger. So what if she cried? Hadn't they all, at one time or another? Expressing one's emotions was not a sin, nor was it anything to be ashamed of. Gail demanded to be treated like an equal because she had self-esteem now, and she deserved to be treated like an equal. But there was nothing wrong with the men protecting her, either, in Castiel's opinion, nor was that anything for her to be ashamed of. That was the natural order of things. Males had always protected females, ever since time began. But Gail had protected all of them, too, whenever and however she could. In Cas's opinion, there was absolutely nothing that she should regret, and the same went for Dean, and Sam. They would always protect her with their lives. Always. That was what family did.

But now he had his own truth to tell, and Cas was tongue-tied. Many people would have trouble coming up with one; in his case, narrowing it down to only one confession was the dilemma.

"I have behaved shamefully here," Cas told his statue. "I am supposed to be a servant of the Lord, and instead, I behaved as if I were the Lord. I brought His sword down on the innocent, rationalizing that the end justified the means." Now the tears began to flow down his face as well.

Gail felt her heart break for Cas. He wasn't wrong, but what else could he have done under the circumstances? He'd been right; it was very easy for all of them to stand there and say what a terrible thing it was that he had done, but she hadn't seen any of them, herself included, come up with a viable alternative, either.

As Cas's statue began to move aside, Gail looked at him and said, "John, 3.14."

Cas turned to her, his cheeks glistening with tears. "What?" he said.

"John, 3.14," Gail repeated softly. "'God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved, through him'."

Cas rushed to Gail and embraced her fiercely. "There is nothing wrong with who you are, and the way that you conduct yourself," he said in a thick voice. "Our Father said so on that day, and I agree. You are my heart, and my soul, and my moral compass. Please don't ever stop being who you are, Gail. Who you are is who I love."

Gail wiped the tears away from his cheeks with her hands. "I love you and I support you, Cas, and I have faith that you will always do the right thing."

"Ummm, guys, don't you think we'd better get into that second chamber, before any other unwanted company comes along?" Sam said dryly.

"Sorry, Sam. You're right," Gail said, giving him a thin smile. She took out her blade and made the hole in the wall. This time it was Cas who peered into it first.

"There's a sarcophagus," he said, "and some more artifacts. And there's a niche at the far end of the room which looks like it might be the right size for a Tablet. But it's quite far away, so I can't tell."

"Any snakes?" Dean asked tersely.

"There don't appear to be," Cas said, and Dean breathed a sigh of relief.

"OK, here goes," Gail said, and she cut out the opening to the second chamber with her blade. Again, they stepped into the chamber slowly and cautiously.

Cas touched the sarcophagus lightly. "It's magnificent," he said.

Gail had to agree that it was beautiful. She hoped that it was someone that it would make the Egyptian people happy to discover, hopefully even an actual member of the royal family. After everything they had been through recently, she hoped that this discovery would be at least a partial reparation. In fact, she could think of a little reparation that could be made right now.

"I'll be right back," she told the men. She winked out of the tomb and over to the palace, finding Ibrahim and grabbing him by the hand. She winked him back, to the first chamber of the tomb.

"I just thought you would want to see this," she told him.

He looked at her, then looked at his surroundings, shocked. "Who are you, really?" he asked her in a hushed tone.

"It doesn't matter," Gail said, shaking her head.

Ibrahim looked down at the dead Bedouins.

"Grave robbers," Cas said. He entered the chamber, Sam and Dean behind him. Then he smiled grimly. "Or, their intention was to be grave robbers, anyway. She made sure that did not happen." He introduced Ibrahim to Sam and Dean, and then he took Gail's hand. "And this is Gail, the woman who I love. She is not a second-class citizen, and she is not a whore. She is the finest person I have ever known, and the fact that she thought to bring you here is just another example of that fact."

Ibrahim looked into the box. "Canopic jars," he said. Then he looked at the wall where the statues stood. They still stood at attention, but they had shrunk in size and were no longer animated. "Anubis."

"Come," Cas said, and Ibrahim followed him into the second chamber. When Ibrahim saw the sarcophagus, he sank down to the floor of the tomb and began to weep.

Sam and Dean exchanged glances. Dean started to smile, but Cas admonished him with a sharp look, so he stopped.

"Thank you," Ibrahim said. He kissed his fingers and touched them to the sarcophagus. As Gail closer to him, he grabbed the hem of her skirt and kissed it, too. "I am very sorry for what I said about you," Ibrahim said to her. "You were very kind to bring me here. Now, if I die here today, I will die happy." Then he kissed the hem of Cas's robes. "I don't know who you truly are, but nevertheless, I am eternally grateful to you," Ibrahim said to him.

"We're here to help mankind," Cas said, and then he smiled at Gail. "And womankind, of course." He looked down at Ibrahim. "We are not here to rob your graves or defile your treasures. We are only here to retrieve an ancient stone Tablet, which has no monetary value, but will be of benefit to the entire human race. And once we have it, we will leave you in peace."

Cas looked to the far end of the chamber, where the niche was located. "Gail, can you - ?" he started to say. He had been about to ask her to provide the light from her blade.

But suddenly, Dean said, "Guys. I think we have a problem."

The walls had become alive with yellow scorpions. Hundreds of them. They crawled down the walls and onto the floor, teeming, and looking very agitated. Dean could feel one on his shoulder, but he didn't want to move suddenly and give it an excuse to strike, so he stayed as still as he could. Somehow, it felt like if just one of them struck, the others would all join in.

"Keep calm," Cas said softly. "Keep very calm."

"Are you talking to me, or them?" Dean said nervously.

"Both," Cas said tersely.

Scorpions were crawling across Sam's boots now. God, they were ugly. These were the extremely venomous, supposedly rare ones that Tommy had told them about. "Cas, what should we do?" Sam asked him quietly.

"Give me a moment, Sam," Cas said, with a bit of an edge to his voice. He was moving towards Dean, slowly. "Is Gail all right?" He didn't want to turn his head suddenly, and it was too dark to see her.

"None on her yet," Sam reported.

Gail had her eyes screwed up tight, allowing only a tiny sliver of vision in. "I'm sorry, guys, but I've got a severe case of the heebie-jeebies right now," she told them. "Please, hurry and figure something out, Cas."

"You're not the only one," Dean said. Cas had reached him now and, incredibly, he was taking the scorpion off of Dean's shoulder with his bare hand.

"You don't want to hurt him," Cas told the scorpion gently. "In fact, none of you want to hurt anyone. You're very tired, and in need of a rest." He bent down and put the scorpion on the floor, with the others. "You will all feel relaxed. So much so, that when you feel the pressure of being walked on, it will be soothing to you. You will not attack anyone. You will simply rest."

The scorpions had stopped moving altogether now, and they were simply sitting there calmly, as Cas had instructed them. "Try taking a step forward, Sam," Cas said.

Sam lifted his boot gingerly and took a step forward. When his foot came down, he crushed the scorpions underneath it, but the others didn't react.

"Holy crap," Sam breathed.

"I know. It's really something, isn't it?" Gail said softly, a hint of a smile in her voice now. "Works on me, too, in case you were wondering," she quipped nervously.

"TMI, Gail," Sam quipped back quietly, venturing another step forward. He proceeded that way until he got about halfway to the location of the niche, and then he got the flashlight he'd forgotten he had on his belt and shone it on the far wall. They all gasped. There was a stone Tablet in the niche. The Earth Tablet, finally!

"Bingo," Sam said, grinning. He went to put the flashlight back in his belt, and then he dropped it. It made a loud, clattering noise, and the scorpions around it attacked it.

"Keep calm," Cas instructed them, and they stopped moving immediately.

Sam kept on going until he got to the far end, and as soon as he put his hand on the Tablet, the scorpions all disappeared. The others let out sighs of relief and rushed to where Sam stood. But then, suddenly Cas and Gail were stopped in their tracks.

"It's warded against Angels, all right," Cas said. "I can't move any closer."

"Neither can I," Gail said.

"We got this," Dean said, stepping forward to where Sam stood. He shrugged the rucksack off his shoulders. "Here, Sammy." Dean took the special carrying case out, and he and Sam put the Tablet in it. "I got this from the bunker. Those Men of Letters must have had some experience with these kinds of things before. I found it in the storage room," Dean told the Angels. "It'll protect the Tablet against, well, pretty much anything. And it's shielded, too. When you sent us back before, Bobby brought down a safe he had in his office, and we'll put this in it. Can't get any more secure than that."

Cas smiled. "Good. Great. Now, please come back here so Gail and I can take you home."

"Once I get this case closed, you guys should be able to come over here," Dean said, fastening the case around the Tablet. "The warding shouldn't work anymore."

Suddenly, there were sounds of gunfire and explosions coming from outside the tomb. "Please hurry, Dean," Cas said nervously.

Ibrahim got up and went running out of the chamber, and a moment later, he came back. "It's the army, and the Bedouin rebels," he panted. "They are warring outside. You must take your Tablet and go, or you will perish."

Dean had the case closed now, and he and Sam started walking back to Cas and Gail. They heard shouting, and they wheeled around to see a group of Bedouins rush into the outside chamber of the tomb.

Cas grabbed the encased Tablet from Dean's arms and thrust it into Gail's, then gave her the push back to the bunker.

Gail appeared in the library area, clutching the Tablet against her chest. "Son of a bitch!" she yelled, channelling Dean.

Bobby rushed up to her. "Is that it, Gail?" he asked.

Gail handed the case to him. "One Earth Tablet, as requested," she told him. "Dean said you have a special place for it."

"I do," Bobby replied, carrying the Tablet over to where the safe stood. He looked at her. "Good job, dear."

"Holy crap," Frank said. "Are you guys seeing this?" He and the rest of the group were watching CNN, who were doing a live report on the fighting that had suddenly broken out in the Valley of Kings.

"Where are the guys?" Jody asked Gail, as Gail approached the TV, transfixed by the images. She had just been there, and now she was here. But what she was seeing did not look good, not at all.

"I don't know," Gail said, dazed. "I just assumed they'd be right behind me. Surely they're not still there? They can't still be there..."

But they were still there. Sam and Dean hadn't been able to get close enough to Cas for him to wink them back to the United States. As soon as the Bedouins had seen them, they'd started shooting, and the men had no choice but to take cover and shoot back. They'd tossed Ibrahim and Cas the extra guns, and the four men were holding off the Bedouins, using the sarcophagus and the statues as cover while firing at the rebels.

Eventually, the Bedouins were all dead, and Cas was about to run over and grab Sam and Dean to wink them out of there when Ibrahim lost it. They had shot their way back out to the original tomb area, and suddenly, Ibrahim yelled out a phrase in Arabic at the top of his lungs and ran outside.

"What the hell was that all about?" Dean asked Cas.

"He said, 'I will kill every last one of you, before I let you defile this grave'," Cas translated.

"The guy's crazy," Dean said. "He's suicidal."

"We have to save him from himself," Cas said, running up the stairs. "It's my fault he's here."

Sam and Dean gaped at each other. Now it was Cas who had lost it. Maybe bullets couldn't hurt him, but the last time the Winchesters looked, they didn't enjoy that same luxury. "It's Gail's fault, actually," Dean groused. Then he ran after Cas.

"What did you say?" Cas asked over his shoulder, picking up some weapons along the way and tossing them back to the brothers.

"Nothing," Dean said quickly. He kept a couple of submachine guns for himself, then passed a couple more back to Sam.

Once they got outside, the men looked around in amazement. There was a full-scale war going on out here. Ibrahim stood, frozen, unsure of what he should do. Who exactly were the enemy?

There was an explosion about a foot away from them. "Grenade!" Ibrahim shouted, and he pushed Cas face first into the ground and fell on top of him, protecting him. The brothers dove for the sand, too, and then there was another explosion, just as close. Sam could feel blood trickling down his face. He looked at Dean. They had to get out of here, or they were going to die.

Gail saw the men coming out of the tomb on TV, and she saw the explosion from the first grenade. "What the hell?" she shouted. "Why are they still there? I'm going back for them!" She popped out of the bunker.

But she went to the crossroads first.

"Have you seen what's going on over there?" she said to Crowley as soon as he appeared. "We have to go get them!"

"I'm way ahead of you," he told her. "I sent my Demon army out there. They'll be just fine."

"I don't care, I want to go get them," Gail persisted. "People are throwing grenades at them!"

"Afraid your fiance might lose a vital bit before the wedding night?" Crowley asked her sarcastically. "He obviously sent you back here to keep you safe. You've locked away the Tablet, I trust?"

"Of course," she told him. "But they need to be here, too. I have to make sure they're safe, too."

Crowley sighed. Here came the doe eyes. "If I don't take you, you'll just go without me, won't you?"

"How well you know me," Gail said with a grim smile.

Well, if she was going to put it that way...Crowley grabbed her hand.

They appeared in front of the men. Crowley looked around the battlefield. "It would appear that my minions have everything well in hand. Still, I do hate all this noise," he said calmly. He snapped his fingers, and the combatants froze in place. "Aaaah, peace and quiet. War may be good for increasing my numbers, but it's very loud, isn't it?"

Castiel looked up at them both from his position on the ground. He was attempting to heal Ibrahim, who had received the worst of the injuries in the second grenade explosion. "I might have known," he said, frowning. "Actually, I guess it's good you're both here. Sam and Dean have injuries, as well."

Gail dropped to her knees in front of Dean, while Crowley tended to Sam, who looked at the King of Hell incredulously but did not argue.

"What happened, Cas?" Gail asked him. "Why didn't you get out?"

"We couldn't," he said grimly. "Everything happened too quickly." He sat back on his heels. "There's nothing I can do for him. He's gone."

"He's dead?" Gail said, crawling over to where Ibrahim lay.

"Yes," Cas confirmed.

She was appalled. "But...that's my fault," she said. "If I had left him at the palace, he'd be fine."

"He tried to take on the whole army, Gail," Dean said. "Said he wasn't going to let them desecrate the grave."

She was crying now. "I should have left well enough alone," Gail said to them. "I thought I was being nice, but I got him killed!"

"I don't know what you're all babbling about," Crowley said. "Look at him. He's fine." He stood up from where he'd been kneeling beside Ibrahim's body and, sure enough, Ibrahim was coughing now, and trying to sit up.

Gail looked up at Crowley. He had clearly revived Ibrahim, and he had done it for her, so she wouldn't feel bad any more. But he would never admit that, of course, and he would just be angry if she commented on it.

"I'll take Moose and Squirrel back to the bunker," Crowley said to Castiel. "You can pop your manservant over to the hospital and get him checked out, and then I believe we're done here. I'll pull back my men, and this lot can settle their differences any way they see fit. You've done all you can here, Castiel, and you've done well. Contrary to what you will allow yourself to believe." He grabbed Sam and Dean by the arms and winked them away.

The instant Crowley was gone, the fighting resumed, and Cas winked Gail, Ibrahim and himself away to the hospital. They reappeared at the emergency room reception desk. There was no one around at the moment, so they weren't seen. "Wait here," Cas said to Gail. "I'll get him checked in, and then I'll be right back." He placed Ibrahim in a wheelchair and wheeled him around the corner, and out of sight.

She waited a while, but Cas wasn't coming back. What was taking so long? The hospital was very quiet right now. She was sure it soon wouldn't be, once they started to receive the first casualties from the fighting. The TV was on in the waiting room, and Gail could see that the war was still raging on.

Where was Cas? She ventured around the corner and through a set of double doors, then down another corridor, then through some more doors. No Cas, no Ibrahim. Just a few doctors and nurses. One of them asked her what she was doing here.

"I'm looking for my fiance," she said. "He brought an injured friend in here a little while ago."

"What does your fiance look like?" a doctor asked her.

Gail described Cas, down to the beard and the colour of robes he'd been wearing.

"That man couldn't have brought anyone in here," the doctor said. "The man you're describing is dead."

"What?!" Gail exclaimed. "What do you mean?"

"Follow me and I'll show you," the doctor said to her. "He didn't have any identification on him. We were wondering who we were going to call on his behalf, to retrieve his remains."

He took Gail to the room where the corpse lay and drew back the curtains. Then the doctor took the sheet off of Cas's face. "Is this your fiance?" he said in a gentler tone.

Gail ran to the table. No, it couldn't be. How could this be? She touched his face and then grabbed his arms, first one, then the other, feeling for a pulse. She tore open his robe. He had a gaping stab wound in his chest, but there was no blood. She'd seen this before. She lowered her head to his chest, but there was no heartbeat.

"No," she breathed. She refused to believe what she was seeing. There had to be some kind of mistake.

"The nurse said she saw some kind of strange blue glow coming from this room, but by the time she ran in here, he was dead," the doctor said to Gail.

Her heart stopped. The blue glow. My God. He was really dead, then. Who had it been? Lucifer? Metatron? Whoever it had been, she was going to kill them.


	6. Desert Rose

Chapter 6 - Desert Rose

When Cas had wheeled Ibrahim into the back rooms of the hospital, the medical personnel had taken care of him right away. They told Cas that they'd been absent from the reception area because they'd been rushing around, stocking up and making preparations for the wave of casualties that they were expecting from the battle in the Valley.

"You'll be in good hands now, Ibrahim," Cas told his former manservant. "Take care of yourself. And please, try to remember that not all Americans are bad, and women are not inferior to us. Will you do that for me?"

"I will do my best, Sheikh," Ibrahim said, taking Cas's hand and kissing it. "I owe you my life."

Cas gave him a nod in acknowledgement, and then left the room, unable to say anything further. He had begun to walk back down the corridor to the waiting room where Gail was when he felt a pair of arms grab him and pull him into one of the rooms, and then he felt the blade stab him in the chest.

"I hate to use such strong-arm tactics, but I needed to speak with you urgently," Death said to Castiel.

They were standing over Cas's vessel, which was lying on the stretcher. "You killed me?" Cas said incredulously.

"I had to," Death told him. "It was the only way I could speak with you directly. Crowley breathed life back into your manservant, and there is not one dead person in this entire hospital. Yet," he added dryly.

"So, you just...killed me?" Cas said again. He couldn't quite get over that.

Death held up a glass vial with Cas's essence in it. "Only for a moment or two. When we're done talking, I'll put this back into you and heal your wound. But this conversation couldn't wait. Walk with me."

They left the room and walked down the corridor.

"You did an excellent job here, Castiel," Death told him. "I know that you will be very hard on yourself because of it, but what you did was worthy of our Father Himself. That is why I came here to help you with your next Tablet. It is the Heaven Tablet, and it is in Rome. But time is of the essence for its acquisition. It is secreted in the sub-basement of a very old building, which is slated for demolition as part of a project to build a new shopping mall. Progress," Death sniffed disdainfully. "No one knows that there is such a valuable item there, of course. But once the building is destroyed, the Tablet may very well be, too."

"Thank you for telling me this," Castiel said to him.

Suddenly, a loud, anguished scream came from down the hallway, where they had just been. "I fear your fiancee has wandered away from the waiting room," Death said with a grim half-smile. "Come." He took Castiel's arm and they moved quickly back up the corridor. "Incidentally, as you might expect, the Heaven Tablet is not warded against Angels," Death told Castiel. "So I imagine that, after you and Gail retrieve it, you may want to take a few days to plan your wedding. A fall ceremony in Italy. Think of all the glorious food you could serve at the reception."

They walked in the room, and once Cas got over the shock of Death's almost-friendly demeanour, his heart broke to see Gail standing there, sobbing. Even though he knew he'd be seeing her again in a minute, she didn't know that. "Please, can you hurry?" he asked Death, who nodded in agreement. He was a dour individual who didn't feel much of anything as a rule, but even Death's heart hurt a little to see her standing over her fiancee, so grief-stricken.

Death snapped his fingers, and Gail froze. He crooked his finger, moving her away from Castiel's vessel. Then he opened the vial and poured Cas's essence into his vessel's mouth. Then Death leaned down and put his mouth on the lips of the corpse, breathing the essence back into Cas. Then he put his hand on Cas's chest and healed the wound, and Cas opened his eyes.

"Good luck in Rome," Death said to Cas. Then he snapped his fingers, reanimating Gail. "I wish you all the best for your wedding, my dear," Death said to her as Cas sat up. "Do save me some lasagna, or a nice rigatoni, maybe." Then he was gone.

Cas swung his legs off the table as Gail ran to him, laughing and crying at the same time. "What happened, Cas?" she asked him. "I thought - you were - " He put his arms around her. "I'll tell you in a minute," Cas said. "Just give me a moment. It's always very disorienting when that happens."

She had no idea what he was talking about, and she didn't really care. He was alive and well, that was all she cared about. "Are you OK?" she asked him, kissing his face all over. "Are you really OK?"

"I'm really OK," he told her. "But I really think we should all chip in and get Death a cell phone for Christmas."

Gail looked at him, puzzled, and he smiled. Then she started kissing his face, again and again. "Can we just go home, Cas? Please?" she said, between kisses.

"With pleasure," he said, taking her hand.

They were in the bunker now, all together, and it was a joyful reunion. Barry and Tommy had been just about to serve supper when Cas and Gail had gotten back, and there were hugs and kisses all around.

"Go ahead and eat, you guys," Gail told them. "I need a shower, big time, and I can't wait to get back into my American whore clothes." Then she realized that Robbie was sitting right there at the kitchen table, and Gail clapped a hand over her mouth. "I'm sorry, Jody," she said, seeing her sister-in-law frown. "Forget I said that, Robbie. That's a terrible, hateful word, and I shouldn't have said it."

Robbie shrugged, pouring himself a glass of milk. "That's OK, Aunt Gail, I know that already. There are certain words you don't say because they're rude, and they hurt peoples' feelings. I know what those words are, and I'll never say them."

Gail smiled. Way to go, kid.

Frank followed her and Cas out to the hall. "You can't just go saying things like that around a kid of Robbie's age. He's really impressionable, Gail," her brother admonished her.

"I get that, Frank. I said I was sorry," Gail replied.

Frank lowered his voice. "For the record, though, I thought it was damn funny. If Jody hadn't been in the room, I probably would have peed myself laughing. 'American Whore' collection, now available at your local department store."

Gail laughed too, and then kissed she him on the cheek before she and Cas headed off down the hallway to shower and change their clothes.

As dinner was ending and the clearing was being done, Cas said, "I just want to thank everyone for your help in Egypt, and I'm sorry it was so unpleasant there. I'm sorry I was so unpleasant there," he amended, smiling ruefully. "I've already received the information for the next Tablet, and it should be much easier to obtain."

"That's what you said about the one in Egypt," Sam pointed out.

Gail gave him a sharp look, but Cas smiled sadly. "You're right, Sam. But, don't worry. I'm absolving all of you from this next one. It's not warded against Angels. Gail and I will obtain it, and then we will spend a little extra time in Italy after that, planning our wedding."

There was bedlam in the room. "What?" Barry exclaimed. "Already?"

"Yes," Cas said firmly, taking Gail's hand and kissing it gently. "We set the date while we were in Egypt. October 15th, which is coming up, very soon. And it can't be soon enough for me. I think after what we've all just been through, we can all use a really good, happy day. I know that Gail and I certainly can."

"But, until then, we have another surprise for those of you who might be interested," Gail said, squeezing Cas's hand. They had discussed this beforehand, and they thought it might be a nice reward for their friends. Gail also thought it could benefit Cas immensely, and herself, as well. It would be nice to leave Egypt with one happy memory, anyway.

Cas continued, "The 'Supernatural' movie is filming in Egypt, coincidentally, and we have received an invitation to visit the set tomorrow. Anyone who wants to come with us is very welcome. Then, after that, Gail and I will continue on to Rome."

"What do you say, Dean?" Sam asked his brother.

"What do you think I say?" Dean retorted. "Hell, yeah! Count us in."

"I think I'd like to go, too," Bobby said. "Could be fun."

"I'll tag along, too," Chuck said.

"Not me," Kevin said. "No offense, Cas, but I've had just about enough of Egypt for a while."

"I'm with Kevin," Ethan said. "Besides, I want to check in with my staff and see how things are going."

"I don't think I want to go, either," Jody said. She had Robbie on her lap, and she smoothed the hair back from his forehead. "I've missed this fella, and I'd like to spend a bit of time with him before we have to go traipsing around again. You can go if you want, Frank."

Gail's brother considered it for a moment. Unlike many other wives that he'd heard of, when Jody said he should go if he wanted to, she really meant it. She wasn't just waiting for him to say he'd like to go so she could lower the boom on him, nor was she going to lay in wait for him here if he did go, and then make him feel guilty about it for the rest of his natural-born life. That was one of the many things he loved so much about Jody. She said what she meant, and she meant what she said. They'd had a pact with each other since entering into their romantic relationship to always be brutally honest with each other, no matter what.

"Nahh," Frank said. "It might be kind of fun, but I've kind of had my fill of it over there, too. Take lots of pictures for us." He took Jody's hand and they walked Robbie down the hall to put him to bed.

"I guess now that everyone's back, we should look for our new place," Barry said to Tommy.

"We're back for now, but I can't promise for how long," Cas told them. "Gail and I should be able to handle the Heaven Tablet on our own, but there are three more to get after that. By all means, look for your place, but we may ask for your help again in the future, if you don't mind."

"In fact, while you're looking for your own place, I wonder if you could set aside a few listings for us, as well," Gail said to Barry.

"Sure," he said, delighted. "What did you have in mind? And what's your budget?"

"Two million dollars," she said, just to see the look on his face.

"Maybe I should have charged you rent for that hotel suite," Barry quipped.

Gail told him the circumstances of her having come by that amount of money. She also advised him that she and Cas were not looking to spend nearly that much.

"A modest three-bedroom house is all we're looking for, or maybe four bedrooms, come to think of it," Gail told him. She was counting pairings on her fingers. Her and Cas for one, Frank and Jody for another. Sam and Dean could each have their own room, but if Barry and Tommy were over at the same time, the brothers could double up. She was subconsciously making Christmas plans, even though it was not quite October yet. She was determined to host a Christmas this year, no matter what ills were befalling mankind at the time. She continued, "It's got to have a kitchen, a dining room, and a living room that's big enough for a Christmas tree." She smiled at Cas, who smiled back. "This year, for sure," he promised her. "No matter where we are, or what we're doing."

"Do you guys take turns sitting on top of the tree?" Tommy joked.

"And here I thought Frank had left the room," Gail quipped. "Never mind, Mister Smarty-pants. Just start looking for places. Oh, and make sure your suits are pressed for October 15th."

The next day, Cas, Gail, Dean, Sam, Bobby and Chuck were all dressed and ready to go to Egypt. Since they would be on the movie set all day, Gail did not have to wear Egyptian garb or keep her face covered. The set was considered American domain, much like a foreign embassy would be, and therefore it was exempt from cultural constraints. She was glad. Still, she wore a plain top, modest shorts, and closed-toe sandals. She'd be comfortable, but she'd still be respectful of their customs.

The Angels popped Sam and Dean to Cairo, and they piled into two air-conditioned taxis to take them out to the movie set. Gail settled back, breathing a sigh of relief. There were a lot of things that she had hated about this place, and the extreme heat was definitely high up on the list. If Cas suggested going anywhere tropical on their honeymoon, she might just have to kill him.

It was so nice to be able to sit next to him again, by his side, able to hold his hand and kiss his cheek whenever she wanted to. He had shaved off his beard as soon as he'd had his shower back at the bunker, and he was once again dressed in his now-familiar jeans and shirt, The Sheikh was gone, and Cas was his loving, humble, soft-spoken self again. If anything, he was being even more gentle and tender, as if to try to make up for that period. He was being more physically demonstrative, too. He had not let go of her hand once, and he kept bringing it up to his lips to kiss it. When the two cabs had come, Cas had quickly put her in one, climbed in after her, and left their friends to the other cab. He had been apart from her here for too long, and under very adverse circumstances. He was sure their friends would understand.

Soon they were making out like two teenagers in the back seat. Nothing improper, just hugging and kissing, kissing and hugging. Their driver had to clear his throat a couple of times before they realized that they were in the back of a cab, not a limousine, and he could actually see them.

"I'm sorry," Cas apologized to the driver. "We're Americans, and we had to endure a forced separation recently."

"We're engaged," Gail said, waggling her finger. "But still, we're in public, and we shouldn't be doing that here. We apologize. We'll stop now."

The driver nodded to the couple. Truthfully, he had been starting to find the display a little bit disgusting. But he had actually seen worse behaviour in the back of his cab before, and not just from Americans, either. At least these two had apologized to him.

They got to the film set, and Cas gave his name to the security guard. "Yeah, you're on the list," the guard acknowledged. "Go on in. Things are a little bit less organized here than they were back home, but you'll find them somewhere."

The group went wandering around. "Wow. This certainly is a big set," Cas said, looking around them in wonder. So far, he didn't recognize anyone, but he imagined a movie would have a much bigger crew than a television show.

"Cas!" Richard's voice. He was just stepping out of a trailer, and he saw Cas's group. "Glad you could make it!" Richard greeted Gail with a brief hug, and Sam and Dean with handshakes.

"Richard, this is Bobby, and this is Chuck," Cas said, introducing the other men.

"Chuck," Richard said, extending his hand for Chuck to shake. "And what do you do, Chuck?"

"I'm a writer," Chuck blurted out.

"Of course you are," Richard said, bemused. "Every actor wants to be a writer, and every writer wants to be an actor."

Chuck looked at Cas, puzzled, and Cas shrugged. Apparently, Richard had assumed that Cas's friends were actors, too. Oh, well. No matter.

"Bobby Singer," Bobby said, offering his hand for Richard to shake.

"Are you kidding me with this?" Richard said, shaking Bobby's hand.

Bobby cursed himself. He shouldn't have introduced himself that way. Now this guy was gonna think he was a lunatic, or worse, a groupie. "Just an amazing coincidence," he said to Richard, trying to smile.

"Your name, or your look, or both?" Richard asked him.

"Umm...both," Bobby said. Sam and Dean were smirking now.

"He was our most popular character," Richard said. "We had a lot of heartbroken viewers after that episode ran. Frankly, I wish we could think of a believeable way to bring him back."

Bobby was smiling now, and Chuck said, "I can think of a few."

"Really?" Richard said to him. "Maybe I should have you talk to our writers, then. Not the guy who's writing this screenplay, though. He's hit on some real gold here. Action, suspense, romance, sex, explosions...this first film is packed to the gills. I think it'll do well as a franchise, but you know how short the attention span is these days. They want to pack all kinds of excitement into this one, because it's the first one." Then he frowned. "Still, I thought that Bobby was one of the best secondary characters we ever had, next to Cas himself, of course." Now Bobby and Cas were both frowning, and Sam and Dean's smiles grew wider.

"Secondary characters?" Dean said to Sam.

"Yeah, that's like lower-tier," Sam said, grinning. "Not as important."

"No offense to everyone's favourites, but let's face it, the whole thing revolves around the Winchester brothers. Anyone else can come and go, but if there's no Sam and Dean, there's no show," Richard agreed.

"No show without Dean and Sam," Dean said smugly.

"Anyone else can come and go," Sam repeated, continuing to grin. This was fantastic. The brothers high-fived each other as Gail rolled her eyes.

"Where's the wardrobe trailer?" Cas asked Richard. "I'd like to say hello to Nicole and Zoey, and my friends here probably would, too," he added, indicating Sam and Dean.

Dean smiled at Cas gratefully, glad he hadn't taken their teasing personally. Yes, Dean would like to say a few things to Nicole. Like, for instance, apologize to her for his behaviour the last time he had seen her. Maybe they could sneak off for coffee, or lunch, or something.

"We have several now, but I'll take you to the one the girls are working in," Richard told the group. "I was just on my way over to talk to some of the production staff, anyway. Maybe I'll introduce you to the screenwriter, if he's here. He's a bit of a weird bird who keeps his own hours, but that's what you get when you hire an 'artiste', I guess. But I've got to say, the man's come up with some pretty interesting ideas, though. He really has a flair for the dramatic. And he's been getting a little bit better at the comedy lately, too."

"I definitely would like to meet him," Chuck said. "He sounds like an interesting guy."

Metatron had seen them pass by, of course. He had been peeking at them from inside his trailer. No one knew that he was here. He just popped in and out whenever he chose, and as long as he wasn't witnessed doing either, Metatron didn't see a problem with that. He knew he had a reputation for being a bit of an oddball, but writers were supposed to be eccentric, weren't they?

He was actually considering going out there and talking to them. Was he crazy? But he knew that they wouldn't make a scene, not with all these humans here, and they certainly wouldn't kill him in front of them, either. He supposed that God, aka Bobby, could once have just smited him? smote? and then modified everyone's memory about it, but Metatron now knew that God was nowhere near this movie set. As soon as Bobby had walked by Metatron's trailer, he had instantly known that Bobby was no longer God. He still had an air of quiet authority, but that vibe, that aura, was gone. Castiel and Gail were way more powerful than Bobby was now.

Metatron had also been extremely impressed with the job that Castiel had done in Luxor. He knew all about it, of course. He'd been checking the Internet every day for updates, and he had watched the news every night. And, in the end, the good guys had prevailed, and they now had part of the recipe needed to construct a brand new cage for Lucifer.

And it was this that he was itching to talk to them about. He did not want to be put in that replacement cage with Lucifer. No way, no how. He'd considered every desperate tactic, every underhanded maneuver he could think of to prevent that from happening. And he'd finally come upon the one thing, the only thing that they would never expect from him. It was just a matter of time before they found him, and Metatron was tired of looking over his shoulder every time he ventured out to stretch his legs. So, when Metatron revealed himself to them, he was going to try to disarm them with the one tactic they would never anticipate coming from him, not in a million years.

He was going to tell them the truth about who he was now, and what his wants and needs were. And, he was going to offer to help them in their fight against Lucifer.

Nicole and Zoey were happy to see Cas, and they were welcoming to his friends. Well, to most of them. Nicole was coolly polite to Dean, who looked shamefaced.

"Can I talk to you alone for a couple of minutes?" he asked her. "Please?"

She sighed. "Yeah, OK, Dean. Let's go for a walk."

"I need to get out there and start doing an authenticity check on some of the extras' outfits," Zoey said. "If anybody wants to come with, we're setting up for a big battle scene."

"Sounds interesting," Sam said, and he, Bobby, and Chuck followed her. Sam looked back at Cas. "You coming?"

Cas smiled. "In a minute." He was sitting in one of the makeup chairs, reminiscing. A part of him really did miss this. It had been fun, and it had been a nice way to earn some money.

"We'll be right there, Sam," Gail told him.

Sam rolled his eyes. Right. Cue the smooching. Still, the two of them had been separated for a long time just recently, at least a long time by their standards. If they wanted to steal a few more minutes alone together, who was he to tell them they couldn't?

When they were alone, Gail put her arms around Cas from behind and kissed his cheek, looking at him in the mirror. "Reminiscing?" she asked him, smiling.

"Yes," he confirmed, answering her smile. "I kind of miss our days in Vancouver. You?" He swiveled the chair around and gently pulled her down onto his lap.

"I do miss it, sometimes. That was one of our best times, Cas," she replied.

"I know." He frowned. "But we'll have better ones, Gail, I promise. I know how hard things have been on you."

"They've been hard on you too, sweetie," she said, kissing his face softly. "Look at what you just had to do. Believe it or not, I understand how crushing that type of responsibility could be. You must feel so alone, sometimes. Even with all of us around you."

He tightened his arms around her. "You really do understand me, Gail. And, yes, it's been hard. But that's what our Father requires of me."

"Well, just remember that we all love you, Cas," she told him, touching his face.

"All of you?" he asked her, smiling slowly. "Anyone in particular, that you can think of?"

"Well, I know Dean has a really soft spot for you," she said, playing along, "and Jody told me she thought you looked kind of hot with a beard."

"That's nice," Cas said, kissing her face. "Anyone else?"

"Well, there was this one American woman who kind of had a crush on you," Gail said, smiling as he nuzzled his cheek against hers, "but she was kind of weird. She thought you should only have one wife, and that it should be her."

"That's the sexiest thing you have ever said to me," Cas said, and he kissed her on the mouth. His tongue parted her lips, and she gave him her tongue in return. They kissed that way for a couple of minutes, and then Cas let go of her. "I have to stop now," he told her. Then he kissed her again anyway.

"You're right. I need to get off your lap now," she told him. Then she kissed him again.

"Please, Gail, we really have to stop now," Cas pleaded.

"You're right," she said again, and this time she did get off his lap. She took a deep breath and smoothed her clothes, which were, somewhat mysteriously, slightly rearranged. She smiled at Cas, shaking her head slowly. "I'll meet you outside in a minute," she said to him, and then she took another deep breath. "October 15th."

"October 15th," he echoed, smiling. Cas was also trying to collect himself now. "I'll be there in just a moment. I need a second to...I just need a second."

Gail's smile widened. She blew him a kiss and exited the trailer.

"I'm sorry I acted like such an ass at Frank and Jody's wedding," Dean said to Nicole, once they were alone.

They'd gone for a short walk away from everyone so they wouldn't be overheard, and Nicole said, "When Cas told me you wanted me there, I was happy to come, Dean. I like Cas, I like you, and I like Gail and Sam. I figured I'd like your friends, too, and it would be a fun evening. And it was, for the most part. But you have to admit, you and Gail were acting a little weird there at the end. By the time Cas brought me back home, I was seriously wondering why I'd even bothered to come."

"Don't blame Gail. It was all my fault. She's had a really bad year. Hell, she's had a really bad several years," Dean said. Now he was defending Gail, even though Nicole hadn't said anything critical of her, not really. Why couldn't Dean just talk straight to this woman?

"I get the feeling she's not the only one," Nicole said dryly. "Isn't Lucifer still out there on the loose? You guys didn't just come from Luxor, by any chance, did you?"

Dean looked at her, startled. "Yeah, I watch the news, Dean," Nicole went on. "I don't know what went on there, and you can tell me as much or as little as you want. But from everything I read, and saw, it just seemed kind of...well, Biblical. And now here you all are. Why do I have the feeling that's not just a coincidence?"

Dean sighed. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to give me a chance to explain what I can over dinner tonight?"

"Just you and me?" she asked.

"Yeah, Nicole, just you and me," he confirmed. "I'll tell you everything I can. It's actually been a pretty wild ride, so far."

How could she pass up an offer like that? "Okay, Dean," she said. He put his arms around her and kissed her. "I'm really looking forward to it," he said. Nicole kissed him back, giving him a little tongue. What the hell. If he'd come all this way just to apologize to her, she wasn't going to act all snooty about it. She really did like Dean.

Meanwhile, the group had all begun to congregate in the one area. They were about to shoot the big fight scene. Zoey was just putting the finishing touches on a few of the costumes and refreshing some of the actors' makeup. It was hard to keep fresh in the desert heat. Nicole rushed over to help, and as they were doing that, a young boy was running amongst the extras, shouting and being exuberant.

"Sean! Get over here!" Richard shouted at the boy. "My wife's brother's kid," he told the others. "He and his parents are on holidays here, and I said he could come out and visit the set today so they could take an adults-only cruise up and down the Nile. I suspect they just wanted a day off so they could get some extra sleep. Sean!"

The boy ran over to where the group was standing. He seemed about as excitable as Robbie got sometimes, maybe even a bit more wound up, if such a thing was even possible, Gail thought.

"Remember what I told you about sitting still and being quiet when we're just about ready to film?" Richard asked Sean.

"Yeah!" Sean shouted, jumping up and down.

Gail's lips twitched. Yeah, that was just like Robbie, all right. Too bad Frank wasn't here to rein him in a bit. Then again, based on what she'd seen, Frank might just wind the kid up even further.

Richard rolled his eyes. "Sorry, he's even more hyper than usual," he said to the group. "I think the crew's been stuffing him full of sugar."

"Hey, Sean, do you want to go and see some of the prop weapons we'll be using?" one of the crew members said to the boy.

"Yeah, that'd be cool! Can I, Uncle Richard?"

Richard silently blessed the crew member who'd suggested that. At least Sean would be distracted elsewhere for a while, and they would have the necessary quiet for the scene.

Once Sean was gone, they started to shoot the fight scene. After a few minutes, the director said, "Cut." Nicole and Zoey moved in again, and the effects guys started applying fake wounds and blood packs to some of the actors.

"Problem, Cas?" Richard said. Cas had been frowning, watching the scene.

"I don't think the Demons are being aggressive enough," Cas told him. "But, I also think the Angels are being too passive."

"They're Angels, Cas," Richard said, not unreasonably from his point of view. Sam and Dean laughed, and Bobby piped up, "So what does that mean? That don't mean they have to be wusses."

"Yes, but they're the good guys," Richard argued. "If they defend themselves too vigorously, they won't be turning the other cheek."

"The only time I've ever seen Cas turn the other cheek was when he was going into his jacket for his secondary weapon," Dean quipped softly, and Sam laughed.

"Do you two have opinions about this?" Richard said sharply.

"No. Sorry," Dean said. "We'll be quiet now, we promise."

Richard sighed. "How would you visualize it, Cas?" Normally, he wouldn't tolerate this from set visitors, but when Cas had worked on the TV show, he'd often had constructive suggestions that had actually ended up improving scenes. And quite frankly, Richard had also felt that the scene had been somehow lacking.

Cas moved forward and began instructing the actors, and Richard and the director made notes. Gail smiled. She had never seen Cas do this before, but it didn't really surprise her. He definitely knew what he was talking about when it came to this kind of thing. But then her smile faded a little. She kind of wished that it was only pretend fighting that they had to do in real life. It would be so nice if the violence was only make-believe.

"I think I'm going to go for a walk," Chuck said under his breath. "If I see one more thing Cas is an expert at, I think I'll puke."

Luckily, Gail was the only one who heard what Chuck said, and she followed him as he walked away. "Wait up, Chuck," she told him. He kept walking, but he slowed down a bit.

"I heard what you said," she told him.

He frowned. "I'm sorry, Gail. I didn't mean for you to hear that. But you guys said I shouldn't keep everything all bottled up, right?"

Gail sighed. Yes, that's what she and Cas had said to him. But it bothered her that he still felt that way. "What can we do, Chuck?" she asked him, frustrated. "Is there anything we can possibly do or say at this point to make you feel better?"

Now it was Chuck's turn to sigh. "No, Gail. It's just something I'll have to work through on my own, I guess. Maybe I shouldn't have come here, after all. Just let me be on my own for a few minutes, okay?"

She stopped walking. "Okay, Chuck."

He continued on, and soon she lost sight of him. Now Gail looked around, and she was disoriented. It was a huge set, and there were so many tents and trailers around she wasn't sure which direction she needed to go in.

She started walking in what she thought was the right direction, and she came upon a clearing where there was a large table set up, with a vast array of prop weapons. Richard's nephew Sean was happily playing with them, and the crew member who had taken him there was talking on a walkie-talkie.

"You need what? More spears?" he was saying. "Real, or fake?"

"One of each," the voice crackled back over the radio.

The crew member lifted two long spears off the table, one that had a blunt tip and one with a sharpened tip. "Come on, Sean, we have to get back now," he said, and he turned around to where the boy was standing. At the same moment, Sean was running towards him, and before the boy could stop his momentum, he had run right into the spear with the sharpened tip.

"Oh, my God," the man said. "Oh, my God, Sean! What the hell did you do?"

Sean looked down at himself. The spear had run right through his stomach. He started to scream.

Panicked, the crewman pulled the spear out of Sean's stomach, and the child collapsed to the ground, bleeding copiously. "No!" Gail yelled, running forward, but it was already too late. Sean was going to bleed out in a few minutes, if she didn't heal him immediately.

"Call an ambulance!" the man was shouting into the radio. "Sean's been hurt!"

Gail called for Cas on Angel Radio, dropping to her knees in front of Sean. She put her hands on his stomach. She couldn't afford to wait any longer. "Go get Richard!" Gail screamed at the crewman, and he dropped the spear and ran off. As soon as he had gone, she pulled Sean's T-shirt away from his stomach and began to heal him.

"Keep still," she told the frightened child. "You're going to see a kind of glow-y thing happening, but it won't hurt, I promise. Then, you'll be all better in a minute. Okay?"

Sean was still crying, but he had mercifully stopped screaming, and he watched, fascinated, as the golden glow came out of Gail's hands and healed the wound. Gail sat back on her heels, exhaling a relieved breath. Thank God she'd been here. Sean's shirt was a bloody mess, and so were her hands, but he would be fine.

Sean sat up and looked at her, wide-eyed. Then he looked past her, over her shoulder.

"What in the holy hell was that?" Gail heard Richard exclaim from behind her.

"I had a spear in my stomach, Uncle Richard!" Sean shouted excitedly. "But she fixed me!"

Oh, crap. Holy crap. Gail looked over her shoulder to see Richard and her guys standing there. How was she going to explain to Richard what he had obviously just seen?

Richard ran to Sean and dropped to his knees in front of his nephew. He looked at Sean's bloody shirt in amazement.

Sean lifted his shirt. "Look, Uncle Richard! I had a hole in my stomach, and it hurt so bad. But she fixed it!"

Richard touched Sean's stomach dazedly. "I know, Sean. I saw."

Double crap. Gail glanced nervously at Richard, then up at Cas, who had moved to stand beside Richard.

"I had to do it, Cas," she told him. "There was no time. He was going to bleed out."

Cas nodded. As soon as the crewman had run over, telling them that Sean had been gravely injured, Richard, Cas, Sam, Dean and Bobby had all run over here. Cas was getting the frantic call from Gail at the same time in his head. Then the men had arrived just in time to see the golden glow coming out of Gail's hands. Fortunately, the crew member had not come back here with them. As soon as he had told Richard, he had passed out from the shock of what had happened.

So Richard was the only one outside of their circle who had seen. But, he had seen. He looked sideways at Gail as Sean jumped to his feet. The boy threw his arms around Gail's neck and said, "Thanks!"

"Who are you?" Richard asked her quietly. "WHAT are you?"

Cas touched Richard on the shoulder. "Would it be all right if we ask Bobby, Sam and Dean to watch Sean for a few minutes, so you and I and Gail can talk in private?" Cas asked his former boss. Richard nodded, and Cas took Sean by the hand and led him over to Bobby. "Please take him back to where we were. We'll be along in a minute."

Once their friends had left with the boy, Richard helped Gail to her feet. He kept looking from her bloody hands, to her face, to Cas's face, and back again.

"We're Angels, Richard," Cas said without preliminary.

Richard stared at them both, open-mouthed. Gail's hand sought out Cas's. She was so nervous that she didn't even think about the blood on her hands. But he grasped her hand as always, giving it a squeeze.

Then Richard started to smile. "I knew you were too good to be true," he said to Cas. Then he looked at Gail. "That explains a lot. That explains an awful lot," Richard said, shaking his head slowly.

"You believe us?" Gail blurted out.

Richard smiled even wider. "Of course I do. Ever since we met Cas, we knew there was something special about him. Nobody could put their finger on it. And now, I know. Thank you for saving my nephew, Gail. I'll be forever in your debt."

"Hey, it's what we do," Gail said uncomfortably, answering his smile. Or, at least, that was what they were supposed to do. Not fight each other, or even Demons, she thought. Once they had disposed of Lucifer, she intended to have that discussion. "We just don't generally do it in front of humans."

Richard glanced back behind himself. "And your friends? Are they - ?"

Cas smiled. "Some of them are, and some of them aren't. Nicole and Zoey already know, but they're the only two here who do, besides you, now. And we need to keep it that way, Richard. Can you do that for us, please? You can tell your wife, of course, but can you please ask Sean not to say anything to anyone? I know it's hard with children, but we have to be very discreet, especially right now."

Richard stared at him. "Does this have anything to do with what's been happening in Luxor?"

Cas was both startled amd impressed. This was a sharp group of people. Before they had rushed over here, Dean had mentioned to Cas that Nicole had asked him the same thing.

"Yes, Richard, but that's all I feel comfortable saying at the moment," Cas told him. "Can you accept that?"

"Cas, I can accept anything coming from you," Richard told him sincerely. "You've done so much good for the shelter. And Gail, thank you so much again for saving Sean. If there's ever anything I can do for either one of you, please, just let me know." But even as he said it, Richard realized how ridiculous that sounded. What could he ever possibly do for two Angels?

"There is something you can do for us, Richard," Cas said. "If you can keep October 15th open, both as a shooting date and in your own personal schedule, we'd love it if you would come to our wedding. I was going to invite Nicole and Zoey also, but I wanted to be discreet about it. There will be both humans and Angels there, but it may involve a couple of things that people who didn't know who we truly are might find a little surprising."

Gail looked at Cas, startled. What exactly did he mean by that? He squeezed her hand briefly, seeing her look. We'll talk about it later, his eyes said. Yes, we certainly will, hers said.

Richard was positively beaming now. "I'd be honoured, Cas," he said.

"Good," Cas said, nodding. "I'll invite the girls, then, or Gail and I will. Then you can let me know where you'll be that day, and we'll send some special escorts to come and get you."

Richard snapped his fingers. "I just remembered. Your friend, Aurielle? The one you brought to the shelter? Is she - ?"

"It's complicated," Cas replied, "but, no. She's not an Angel. What about her, Richard?"

"The last time I talked to my wife, she told me that Aurielle was looking to talk to the both of you," Richard told them. "But she didn't know how to reach you."

Cas and Gail exchanged glances. What could that be all about? "Did she say anything else, Richard?" Cas asked.

"Something about having seen a mutual acquaintance of yours on the streets of Vancouver," Richard told them. "But, beyond that, I have no idea. Listen, I'd better get back to work now. Thanks again, and I'll see you October 15th."

"Please tell our friends we'll be along in a minute," Cas said to him.

Once Richard had left, they looked at each other. "What do you suppose Aurielle wanted?" Gail asked him. "A mutual acquaintance?" Who could Aurielle have been referring to?

Chuck had been walking around the set for a while, stewing in his own juices. Now he was starting to feel like a whining, pouting baby. No one had actually treated him poorly, least of all Cas and Gail. Yet every time he turned around, he was feeling resentful. What the hell was the matter with him?

Suddenly, Chuck felt someone yank on his arm, and he was pulled into a tent. The sun was bright outside, and it took his eyes a moment to adjust.

"Hi, Chuck," a man's voice said. "Long time, no see."

Metatron! Chuck froze in terror.

"Don't panic, Chuck," Metatron said to him. "I only want to talk."

Richard sat in his chair as they were setting up the next scene, deep in thought. He'd had a brief chat with Sean, who had more or less convinced himself now that it had all been a magic trick, or an optical illusion, or something. Thank God for kids and their resilience. Richard had taken off Sean's bloody T-shirt and given him a Supernatural T-shirt to wear, and he had discreetly disposed of Sean's bloody T-shirt, with the gaping hole in it.

Richard had also ducked into one of the production trailers to talk to the crew member who had inadvertently injured Sean in the first place. Some of his fellow crew members had carried him into the air-conditioned trailer after he had passed out, and Richard advised him now that Sean was just fine.

"But...he was badly injured, Richard!" the guy protested, agitated. "He was bleeding out!"

"He was bleeding, all right, but Cas's girlfriend has medical training, and she was able to get the bleeding under control. Don't worry; he's just fine. In fact, I'm afraid he's getting boisterous again. I think we're going to have to tie him down and gag him, before we film the next scene," Richard quipped.

So all was calm now, and Richard was starting to wonder just what kind of divine intervention was at work here. Their show had started out with a tiny cast, and a nearly non-existent budget. It was almost cancelled after the first year of production, and for the first three seasons, it had hung on by a thread. Then, one of the writers had had the inspiration of a lifetime. The show was, at its core, a story of two brothers who were monster hunters, but you could only come up with so many monsters, and so many ways of killing them, before the show became redundant and formulaic. Then this particular writer had suggested that Dean be delivered from the tortures of Hell, which was the cliffhanger at the end of Season 3, by an Angel, whose name was Castiel. Heaven had wanted to use Sam and Dean to open the seals which would begin the Apocalypse, and the Angels were not very nice individuals at all. They were fierce warriors who thought nothing of killing each other, and using humans to do their bidding, because they were superior life forms who had been given a mission.

And Castiel had been written that way too, at least initially. But the actor who played the part had brought unexpected nuance and depth to the role, and viewers had been captivated by this new storyline, and by his special relationship with Dean. And later, Castiel developed a close bond with Sam, and Bobby, and their circle. The Angel/Demon plotlines had progressed way beyond what the show's producers had initially envisioned. Now the show was so hugely popular that it had actually transcended the small screen, and it showed no signs of slowing down.

But then along comes a guy named Cas, out of nowhere, applying for the job of body double for the character of Castiel. And he bears more than a passing resemblance to the actor who plays Castiel. And Cas has got a little wide-eyed girlfriend he needs to protect from an alleged abusive ex-boyfriend. Then the couple disappears out of the blue, with no explanation. Then Cas comes back, seeking re-employment, and this time he has a couple of friends visiting him on the set whose names are Sam and Dean, and they strongly resemble their actor counterparts, too. Then Cas suddenly disappears again, but now here he is, telling Richard that he and Gail are actual Angels. Richard's head was spinning.

Cas and Gail were back at the filming area now. Cas had taken her into the wardrobe trailer to clean the blood off, and Cas had gotten her a clean T-shirt to put on. As soon as Richard saw them, he asked to speak with them privately again.

"What's your connection to the show?" Richard asked them. "Is there some kind of a purpose here, Cas? Are we supposed to be conveying some kind of a message to humanity, or something?"

Cas smiled. "No, I don't think it's anything like that, Richard." He looked at Gail. "Frankly, we have no idea why we seem to have such a connection to this show. Believe me, we've talked about it. It's been going on for quite some time now, yet we're as mystified as you are about it. We've had a bit of a strange relationship with the show, both good and bad. But you have all treated me very kindly, and I'm very happy to call you my friends."

Richard was still looking thoughtful. "And now, here you are in Egypt, and here we are in Egypt, and our screenwriter has Castiel and his friends running around, searching for ancient holy artifacts. Without giving too much away, is that anywhere in the ballpark of what was going on in Luxor, Cas?"

Cas was shocked. That was way too close to what was actually happening for comfort. "Who is this screenwriter, Richard?"

"An Internet author who goes by the pen name 'First Edition'," Richard replied, and Gail gasped. "First Edition" was the name of the author who had written the fan fiction book series that she and Cas had read. The series that detailed their entire life experiences together, including Cas having been a Demon. A fact that no one except Cas and herself knew about, now.

"We'd normally never have hired an Internet fan fiction writer for such a huge project as this," Richard continued, "but when we met with this guy, there was just something that was so compelling about him. His stories were so original, so creative. He pretty much persuaded us to hire him on the spot."

"What does he look like, Richard?" Gail asked, almost afraid to hear the answer now.

"He's a little guy, kind of nebbish-looking, if you know what I mean," Richard said, smiling. "He likes to wear smoking jackets, or blazers with patches on the elbows. I think he honestly thinks that that's what writers are supposed to wear. It's almost like he's from a different era, or something."

Gail and Cas looked at each other, dismayed. Metatron. It had to be Metatron. Gail was kicking herself. She'd had her suspicions about "First Edition" for ages now, but she had never followed through beyond that initial e-mail contact. Of course, her mind and her body had been hijacked by Lucifer shortly afterwards, so maybe she deserved a little bit of a break on that one.

"I wonder if that's who Aurielle saw," Gail said to Cas. He was already nodding. She was likely right. But, what could they do about it now?

"Do you know this guy?" Richard asked them.

"We might," Cas answered, pursing his lips. "Do you have any idea where he is now?"

"He should be here, sometime today," Richard said, and Gail's heart stopped for a moment. "He's in Cairo, and I asked him to come to the set today, to talk about some rewrites."

Cas and Gail looked at each other in astonishment. Could it really be this easy?

Metatron and Chuck were sitting down, facing each other. Chuck had considered attacking him, or just trying to cut and run, but he hadn't plucked up the courage to do either. If his one attempt were to fail, Metatron would make mincemeat out of him.

What a hypocrite Chuck was. He was whining about wanting to be treated with respect, but what was he doing to earn it? Here Metatron was, both Heaven and Hell's Most Wanted if you didn't count Lucifer, and Chuck wasn't doing a damn thing about it. He tried to send a call to Bobby on Angel Radio, but Metatron smiled.

"Sorry, I can't let you do that, Chuck," Metatron told him. "I may be talking to all of them in a minute, myself. But first, I wanted to get the lay of the land, so to speak." He gave Chuck a mischievous smile. Just because Metatron was considering reinventing himself, as Chuck himself had done, didn't mean that he was above needling Chuck just a little.

But Chuck didn't react to Metatron's little jab. He was still thinking furiously, trying to figure out a way to alert the others, now that his radio signal was jammed.

"Relax, Chuck, I'm not going to kill you," Metatron assured him.

"Why not?" Chuck blurted out. "Why wouldn't you?"

"Because, believe it or not, I don't want to," Metatron replied. "Believe it or not, I don't want to kill anyone, any more. Not even Castiel."

Chuck's heart fell into the pit of his stomach. Why did he find that so hard to believe?

"I know it's hard to believe, Chuck, but it's true," Metatron said, correctly reading Chuck's thoughts. "I've found my calling now, and it's all I want to do. I'm a writer, Chuck. An author."

Chuck nearly smirked. The guy was writing a screenplay based on a TV show based on a couple of trashy books that Chuck himself had written, and suddenly, he was Shakespeare.

Metatron could sense what Chuck was thinking, and he would have thought the same thing, had the shoe been on the other foot. But he had told himself that if he could convince a guy like Chuck, maybe Chuck could help him to convince Castiel of his sincerity. Or, at least stand in front of him when he talked to Cas.

"I just want to be left alone, to live out the rest of my existence doing what I love to do," Metatron continued. "Do you think Castiel could be convinced to spare me?"

"So, let me get this straight. The most notorious, reprehensible Angel out of Heaven - "

"Well, maybe not the MOST," Metatron interrupted, making a face.

Chuck sighed. "All right. The second-most, then. Anyway, you were one of the worst of us. You were in Lucifer's cage for a reason, you know. You killed your fellow Angels in the Fall, you killed humans on Earth whenever you felt like it, you conspired with the King of Hell, you actually killed both Gail and Cas, and then you kidnapped them both and tried to kill them again! Why on earth would you ever think that we would believe anything you say?"

Metatron frowned. He'd known that this was going to be the reaction, of course. Suddenly, he leaned foward and, before Chuck could react, he put his palm on Chuck's forehead to read what was in there. It was very strange. Metatron saw an awful lot more resentment in there than there should have been for a so-called good guy. It was almost as if the old, evil Chuck was doing battle in there with the new, allegedly improved Chuck. Metatron was startled. Was Chuck really as benign as he claimed to be now?

Right now, though, Metatron's priority was to convince the God Squad somehow of his own harmlessness. Desperate times called for desperate measures. He leaned in closer and breathed his essence into Chuck's mouth.

Another scene was being set up, and it was another one that had to be done just right. In this part of the story, Sam and Dean and Cas were on the run from the Bedouin rebels, who were chasing them across the desert. Somewhat inexplicably, they were fleeing in the Impala, driving in a zigzag pattern across the sand, evading the charging Bedouins, who were galloping behind on camels, firing machine guns at the heroes. Visually spectacular for a big-screen feature film, but highly unlikely in real life.

Cas was bemused. There was so much that was inherently wrong with this scene that he didn't know where to begin. As devoted as Dean was to his Impala, he would not be driving it in the desert in Egypt. But Richard said the show's fan base needed to see the Winchesters driving around in Dean's "Baby". It was the car they loved, and the car that they had come to expect. So the screenwriter had explained its presence here somehow, and Richard didn't think it would be that much of a problem. People went to movies like this to escape reality, he'd told Cas. But Cas wouldn't be in the back seat of the car hanging on for dear life while Dean performed all of those evasive driving maneuvers, Cas thought. He would have just grabbed the brothers and winked them to safety. But that was the problem, Richard had said quietly. He was highly amused by their conversation, now that he knew what he knew. Cas couldn't just use his magic Angel dust every time the boys were in trouble to bail them out of it. Where would the suspense be, then, the sense of danger?

Cas thought about that. Funny, there didn't seem to be any lack of danger in their lives, despite his and Gail's "magic Angel dust".

"And let's face it, Bedouins aren't going to be chasing them through the desert on camels," Sam chipped in. "Tommy said they don't do that anymore, and we didn't see any guys on camels when we were there."

"It does make a kick-ass action scene, though," Dean said approvingly. "Especially the way Dean drives."

"You know..." Richard mused aloud. "Cas, Gail, can I talk to you a minute?"

He took them away from the group and said, "I really want to do at least a little something for you, to show my appreciation. Cas, how would you like your old job back, for this scene? Sam and Dean, too. All three of you can be the body doubles for the actors in this scene. Dean can even do the driving for a couple of minutes, if he's willing to sign a waiver. We'll put in all the effects later, so it won't really be dangerous. But then at least you and your friends can be in the movie. Do you think they would like that?"

Cas and Gail smiled. "Like it? They'll be like kids at Christmas," Gail said.

"I'm sorry I can't put you in there too, dear," Richard said to her. "None of us ever thought it would be believable for Cas to have a girlfriend, even though he did in the fan fiction book series."

"It isn't believable," Cas said, putting his arms around Gail. "No one would ever believe that someone like him would ever be so lucky."

Now it was Richard's turn to smile. "Seeing the two of you, though, we may have to rethink our position."

"Well, in any event, don't worry about me," Gail said. "I think it's a wonderful idea for the guys, though. I'll definitely be paying to see those handsome faces on the big screen." She touched Cas's face, still smiling.

Cas had been about to back out gracefully, wanting his friends to have their moment, but as soon as he saw how happy Gail looked at the prospect of seeing him in the movie, if only for a few seconds, he knew that he couldn't refuse. So Zoey and Nicole dressed all three men and put makeup on them in preparation for the scene.

"Better practice signing autographs, for all those fans who'll be accosting you once the movie comes out," Zoey teased them.

"Maybe practice self-defense, for all the groupies who'll be stalking you," Nicole chipped in.

"Now, why on earth would we want to discourage that?" Sam quipped.

"You don't mind my dressing Cas, do you, Gail?" Nicole said with a smile.

"Do I mind that you've gotten way more action from him in the last few minutes than I've had in the last few weeks? Heck no, why should I mind?" Gail quipped. Nicole looked a little taken aback, but Gail smiled to show that she was kidding.

"I'm just looking forward to you un-dressing me after all this is over," Dean said to Nicole, and she rolled her eyes, shaking her head. "Let's go, Romeo. It's time to get this scene done," she told him. "We're losing daylight."

The men rose from their chairs and Cas leaned forward, sniffing the air around Dean. "You smell very nice," he told his friend, smiling. "And you both look very handsome."

"OK, yeah, thanks, Cas," Dean said, rolling his eyes. But he started to smile.

"I'd say you do, too, but Gail might kick my ass," Sam said, grinning. "We have to get the two of you married off quick, so she's not so grouchy all the time."

"You'd BETTER get going, before I actually do kick your butt," Gail grumbled good-naturedly. "Next time you see me, I might be wearing a fake beard and riding a camel."

They all laughed, and everyone walked outside. The guys shot the scene, and it only took a couple of takes to get a scene that both Richard and the director were happy with.

"Great driving, Dean," Richard told him, and Dean grinned, pleased with the compliment. He thought he'd done a pretty good job, but it was good to hear Cas's boss say so. Or former boss, he amended. The Impala they had here was so similar to his Baby that he'd found driving it to be almost second nature. It hadn't been too hard imagining the three of them on the run from crazed Bedouins; all he had to do was draw from recent experience. But, how the hell did real actors do it?

"What did you think?" Dean asked Nicole, plunking himself down in the chair for her to remove his makeup.

She dabbed his face with cold cream and grabbed some sponges. Truthfully, Nicole had been very impressed by Dean's handling of the car, and more than a little turned on by it. But he was acting a little too smug at the moment. "It was all right," she said, attending to his face with a sponge. "But it'll look really impressive once they add all the special effects later."

Sam grinned. "Keep your face still for a second, Sam," Zoey said. She was in the process of removing his makeup.

Nicole glanced at Cas. "Sorry, Cas, we'll get you in a sec. This may be a big-budget movie, but there's still just the two of us. The lead actors have several wardrobe and makeup people each, but we have to multi-task here."

"That's OK, Nicole. I'm pretty sure I've seen it enough times that I can do it by myself," Cas said. He opened a jar of cold cream and began to dab it on his face, then he grabbed some sponges and began to wipe the makeup off of himself. "How am I doing?" he asked the girls after a minute or two.

"Pretty good, Cas," Zoey said, smiling. She was helping Sam put his old T-shirt back on. It wasn't really part of the job, but she didn't mind. Sam had asked Zoey if she wanted to have dinner with him tonight, and she'd said yes. She was looking forward to repeat of the kind of night they'd enjoyed in Vancouver. Not that she was looking for any kind of relationship or anything, but he was here and so was she, and they were both consenting adults, weren't they?

Nicole tossed Dean's clothes to him and went over to Cas to look at his face. "Good job, Cas," she told him. "Lucky most actors aren't the do-it-yourself type, or we'd be out of jobs."

Cas looked at Gail. "Did I get it all?" he asked her.

"If Nicole says you did, then I'm sure you did," she said, shrugging.

"Are you sure you wouldn't care to look closer, just to make sure?" he asked her, smiling.

Ohhhh. "Well, on second thought, maybe I will have a look," Gail said. She moved close to him and touched his face lightly, with her fingertips. "I don't see anything. But did they put any on your mouth?"

"They might have," Cas said, straight-faced. "I think you'd better check."

Gail kissed him on the mouth. "I don't think I see any there. But maybe I'd better check again, just to be on the safe side." She kissed Cas again, and he wound his arms around her waist and pulled her onto his lap.

"Should we be here for this?" Nicole said to the others.

Dean rolled his eyes. "We're used to it. They pull that kind of crap all the time. Come on, you guys, get a room, already."

"We will, Dean," Cas said, coming up for air. "October 15th."

"Well, until then, stick a sock in it, willya?" Dean grumbled.

"In what?" Cas asked, puzzled. Gail laughed, and got off his lap. "As much as I hate to admit it, these guys are right," she said to Cas. "We've got to stop."

"Why?" he asked her.

Gail looked at him. "You know what? I have absolutely no idea. Be that as it may, I think I'll go for a walk while you guys finish up here."

She stepped outside and walked around for a bit. Chuck approached her. "Where have YOU been?" she asked him. "I thought you got lost, or something."

"No, just soaking up the ambience," he said to her. "Walk with me for a minute?"

Gail looked at him. "Sure, Chuck. What's up?"

They began to walk together. "So, you two kids are going to take the plunge, eh?" Chuck said, taking her hand and looking at the engagement ring. "That's amazing. Believe it or not, I'm really happy for you. Have you set the date yet?"

Gail looked at him curiously. "What's gotten into you, Chuck? Has the desert air finally baked your brain? October 15th! We told you guys all about it already! And what do you mean, 'believe it or not'? Is that some more of your jealousy crap, Chuck? Cause quite frankly, I'm getting tired of hearing about it. I thought you were our friend. I hope you're genuinely happy for us."

"I'm sorry, Gail. Of course I'm happy for you guys. After everything the two of you have been through, no one deserves to be happy more than you," Chuck told her. He opened his arms. "Hug?"

Gail walked into his arms and gave him a hug. "Things have been so hard on you for so long, haven't they, Gail? I didn't realize how bad they were until you and Cas split up after the cure. I thought you two would never get back together, and that would have been one of the saddest things to come out of that whole plotline. I really do want to see true love prevail, Gail. I really need for you and Castiel to believe me."  
Gail's eyes widened. This was not Chuck. It couldn't be. Like everyone else, he'd had his memory modified by Lucifer to have no recollection of the disease Cas had had, so there was no way he should know anything about the cure. And he had called it a "plotline". She pulled out of the embrace.

"Where's Chuck?" she asked him suspiciously.

Damn. Metatron had forgotten how sharp she was. "He's all right, Gail. He's safe. I haven't harmed him. I just wanted to talk to you for a minute, and I knew that if I approached you as myself, you'd freak out."

"Of course I would freak out, Metatron," she replied, her heart hammering in her chest. "You've been the bane of our existence for years now, and I still owe you big-time for what you did to Castiel." She opened her mind and was about to call Cas privately on their Original frequency when Metatron/Chuck smiled. "Go ahead and call him," he said. "But please, tell him to come alone." Then he hustled her into the tent where his own vessel lay on the floor, like a lifeless mannequin. Gail looked down at it, wide-eyed. Now she'd seen everything.

Metatron sat her down in a chair. "I'm sorry, Gail, but this is for my own protection." He took an Angel blade out of his jacket pocket and held it over her.

Great. Gail sent Cas another message to let him know that Metatron had a blade, but he was not trying to attack her at the moment. Oh, and not only that, but he currently had Chuck's face on.

Metatron's pulse was racing. Here we go, he thought. Any minute now, Castiel was going to come through that tent flap, and Castiel was going to be enraged.

"I don't want to hurt you, Gail, and I don't intend to," Metatron told her nervously. "But I have to stay alive long enough to have our conversation." He held the blade close to her.

"You should have thought of that before you nearly ruined our lives," she retorted. "As far as I'm concerned, you deserve whatever Castiel's going to do to you."

"He's not going to do anything to me as long as I have you here like this," Metatron said, and he put the blade to her throat. She shut her eyes tight. Was this it?" Was he finally going to kill her?

Cas came bursting into the tent. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Chuck, standing over Gail with an Angel blade to her throat. No, wait; check that. She'd advised that this was Metatron, and that he'd taken possession of Chuck. Cas looked down at the tent floor, seeing Metatron's empty vessel. Apparently, it was true, then.

Cas cursed himself. They had concentrated all their energies on Lucifer, and here Metatron had been all along, writing his little stories, walking the streets of Vancouver with impunity, and writing a screenplay for the very show that Cas had once worked on.

And here Cas was, without any weapon at all. None of them had any. He had let his guard down for the day, thinking that they could make a simple visit to see his human friends on a movie set without having to worry about self-defense. But he should have known better. He really should have. When had things ever worked out for them?

His eyes flashed bright blue. "Take it easy, Cas," Metatron said nervously. "We don't want anyone getting hurt here."

"Yet you're holding an Angel blade to my fiancee's throat," Castiel said in his quiet voice.

"That's just for my own protection," Metatron told him. "I wanted to talk to you both, but I need to stay alive long enough to do it."

"I find I'm not in a very talkative mood when I've got a blade pressed to my throat," Gail said tartly.

"Well, until Castiel will sit down like a nice, civilized Angel and stop pacing around like a caged tiger, I'd rather not take any chances," Metatron said.

"How about this?" Cas said. "How about you remove the blade from her throat right now, or I'll rip your head right off your shoulders?!"

"That doesn't sound like someone who's willing to sit down and have a civilized conversation," Metatron chided him. "That's why I wanted to remain in Chuck's body for a while. You don't want to rip Chuck's head off his shoulders, do you, Castiel? Even though, from what I understand, he's been a little bit of a pill recently."

"No, you're right, Metatron, I don't want to rip Chuck's head off," Cas said almost conversationally. "But that's not actually what I said." He strolled over to the floor of the tent where Metatron's vessel lay, and he crouched down over it. "Unless you want to live the rest of your existence as Chuck, I suggest you remove the blade from Gail immediately. Good luck explaining your identity to your employers then."

Metatron sighed. He supposed Castiel had him there. "Promise not to kill me until you hear me out?" he said hopefully.

"No," Castiel said shortly.

Metatron gave up. He lowered the blade from Gail's throat, but kept it by his side.

"Come here, Gail," Cas said quietly. She walked over to where he was, and he nudged her behind him. Cas glared at Metatron, but let go of his vessel, letting it drop to the floor. Then he approached Metatron, facing his enemy.

"Whose blade is that?" he asked Metatron angrily. "Who did you kill to get it?"

"No one, Castiel," Metatron said. "I meant what I said about not wanting to hurt anyone anymore." He tossed the blade to the floor in Cas's direction. "It's not even a real blade. I got it from the props department."

Cas stared at him, then bent down and picked up the blade. Sure enough, it was a fake. He couldn't believe it. "I should kill you right now," he seethed.

"I can help you bring Lucifer down, when the time comes," Metatron said quickly. "All I want in return is my life."

"And why should we believe you?" Castiel exclaimed. "Throughout your entire existence, all you have done is evil. Now you would have us believe that you have changed?"

"Why not?" Metatron said. "Chuck did. Aurielle did. Why not me?" He moved forward slowly, raising his hands in supplication. "I have finally found my calling, Castiel. I have finally found something that makes me truly happy. I do not want to harm anyone ever again, and I do not wish to be harmed, either. So here is my proposal to you: Once you have accumulated everything you need to trap Lucifer, contact me, and I will combine my powers with those of yourselves and Crowley to subdue him. Then you can strip my powers from me, and I will live out the rest of my mortal life as an author. Then, when my time comes, I will die happily, knowing that I spent my final years doing the only thing I ever truly loved."

"Why would you ever think that I would simply let you go?" Castiel asked him coolly.

"Tell me, Castiel, what have I been doing since Lucifer and I escaped from the cage?" Metatron asked him.

"What do you mean?" Cas snapped. "What are you talking about?"

"Exactly what I said," Metatron replied. "How many people have I killed? How many threats have I made to you and yours?"

Gail knew what he was getting at. "I hate to say this," she said hesitantly, "and I mean, I REALLY hate to say this, but he's right, Cas."

Cas wheeled on her. "Don't look at me that way," she said, a little defensively. "You know that he's right. In all the time they've been on the loose, we haven't heard a peep out of him. He hasn't caused us any trouble."

"Nor do I intend to," Metatron said quickly. "You have my word. I know that hasn't meant anything in the past, but I mean to keep it, now."

Castiel continued to glare at him. This was a trick. This had to be a trick. This was just another example of Metatron being cornered and trying to save his own miserable hide.

"No," he said shortly. "You cannot be trusted."

"Let him touch your forehead," Gail said suddenly. Cas looked at her again. "You can read his true intent, can't you?" she asked Cas. "That's the only way we'll know for sure."

Cas was shaking his head. "I do not need to read his true intent to know that he is a liar, and one of the most reprehensible Angels history has ever known."

"History can be changed, Castiel," Metatron said quietly. "I would welcome you to read my intent."

"Re-enter your vessel, then, and I will," Castiel told him.

Metatron had wanted to hang onto Chuck's body a little bit longer, just in case. But he realized he had to show a little good faith, here. So he walked over to where his vessel was, knelt down, and breathed his essence back into himself. As soon as he did that, Metatron's body sat up and Chuck staggered, but remained on his feet.

"Cas? What the hell's going on?" Chuck exclaimed.

"Metatron possessed you," Cas told him.

"Sorry, Chuck," Metatron said.

Castiel sighed. "Come here, then." Metatron approached him cautiously, and he cowered a bit when Cas moved his arm suddenly. Perhaps a little payback on Cas's part, or perhaps Metatron was just more than a little jumpy.

Then Cas's hand was on his forehead, and shockingly, he discovered that Metatron was telling the truth. He read every aspect of Metatron's intent, searched every nook and cranny of his mind, and found only sincere intent.

Cas removed his hand, stunned.

"You see, Castiel? I meant what I said," Metatron said softly. "I'll continue to write for 'Supernatural', and I will be available when you need me to help you defeat Lucifer."

"Just a moment," Castiel said. "We have not struck an agreement yet." He looked at Gail and Chuck, then back at Metatron. "Wait here."

Cas took Gail and Chuck by the hands and winked them outside the tent.

"Is he really sincere, Cas?" Chuck asked disbelievingly.

"He is," Cas said. He could scarcely believe it himself. He looked at Gail. "What do you think?"

She made a face. She supposed she should be grateful that he was asking her opinion about such a serious matter, but this was huge. Were they really considering just letting Metatron go?

"I guess if you really believe he's sincere, he could be our Ace in the hole when it comes time to incapacitate Lucifer," Gail said to him.

"Chuck?" Cas asked him.

"It's your call, Cas," Chuck said uncomfortably.

Cas sighed. Of course it was. He popped them back into the tent.

"We will spare you for now, but if you renege on our agreement in any way, there will be no second chance," Castiel told Metatron. "Are we clear?"

"Absolutely," Metatron said. "Thank you for your consideration. I promise you, you won't regret it."

Cas frowned. He was regretting this already. But perhaps this was a way for him to try to balance the scales, after all the lives he had taken in the acquisition of the Earth Tablet. Or perhaps, like many other decisions he had made in the past, this one was also going to rise up and bite him in the butt.

"Let's go," he said to Gail and Chuck, "before I change my mind." He looked at Metatron one more time. "We will be in touch. Make sure you are available when we call."

The day was nearing its end now. It had been fun, but Bobby and Chuck had pretty much had their fill. They said their goodbyes to Richard, and then to Sam and Dean, and Cas and Gail. Chuck, Cas and Gail had made a pact to keep what had transpired between them and Metatron a secret for the time being. Chuck and Bobby winked themselves discreetly back to Heaven, and Sam and Dean arranged to hitch a ride back to town on the crew bus with Nicole and Zoey, and go to dinner from there.

"Call me on my cell phone when you're ready to go back to the bunker, and Gail and I will take you," Cas said to the brothers. They waved as Sam and Dean boarded the bus, and then Gail turned to Cas. "What now?" she asked him. He smiled. "You'll see," he told her.

Dean and Nicole were having a quiet dinner on the terrace of her hotel room. After having discussed it with Cas, Dean had told her what they agreed they felt comfortable with her knowing. But the abridged story was astounding enough.

"So you're telling me that these Tablets are really the key to defeating Lucifer?" Nicole said, dazed. What Dean was telling her was happening in real life was almost exactly the same thing that was happening in the movie. Since when had her life become an episode of The Twilight Zone?

"Yep," Dean said. He found it pretty unreal too, but since he'd had more experience with such things, this fact didn't surprise him nearly as much as it could have.

"And we're making a feature film about our intrepid heroes running around the world, looking for holy artifacts," Nicole went on, her voice heavy with irony.

"Yep again," Dean said. Then he grinned. "Maybe we don't need to find out where the other Tablets are. Maybe we should just be following you guys around," he half-joked.

"Dean, how dangerous is what you're doing?" Nicole asked him softly.

"Very." He shrugged. "Hey, welcome to my world."

She put her hand on his. "I'm glad you came here to see us today. And thanks for telling me everything you were able to tell me. I do feel better knowing you guys are out there fighting to rid us of Lucifer."

"When can I see you again?" Dean asked her suddenly.

Nicole raised an eyebrow. "Who says you're done seeing me now?"

Dean grinned again. He took her hand, and they went inside.

Sam and Zoey had foregone dinner, and they were pounding shots in her room. In a bit of a role reversal, while Sam's older brother had eaten a healthy dinner and abstained from booze so he could make it up to Nicole in the bedroom, Sam had given in to his impulse to wash Egypt out of his system with alcohol, and Zoey had been matching him shot for shot.

Finally, they fell into bed together and spent a very enjoyable couple of hours. Then, Sam ordered coffee from room service while Zoey dozed. As he dressed, he realized that he hadn't told her anything about Luxor. But she hadn't asked, either.

Cas spread the blanket he'd borrowed from the movie set over the sand, and he sat down, reaching for Gail's hand. She sat down on the blanket with him, and he put his arms around her from behind as she leaned against him.

Gail looked up at the sky. They were in the middle of the desert, and there were so many stars there that she gasped. This was a sight you could never see in the city. "It's beautiful, Cas," she told him.

"This was the sight that I used to see all those years ago, when I was a shepherd, tending my flock," he said to her. "It was a much simpler time then. But it was also a very lonely existence. Sometimes I would go a couple of years without either seeing or talking to any of my family. So I would talk to my animals, instead. They were very good listeners," he added, smiling gently. "There are times when I miss that way of life, and the serenity that came along with it."

He was silent for a moment, and then he continued, "Then I was a young man in a very poor village, living a very minimalistic life, and I was not satisfied with my lot. I ached for travel, and adventure. In both of those lives, I wanted so badly to serve God by being a brave and noble hero. I longed to put down my staff, and my quill, and pick up a sword." He laughed softly, with little humour. "Be careful what you wish for, right?"

"That's a very human quality, Cas, and it's one we can all relate to," Gail said softly, matching his gentle tone. She pulled his arms tighter around herself. "The grass is always greener. I was the same way. I read so many fantasy novels when I was a little girl, and I wished that my life could be that exciting. Then, when my life suddenly became one of those books, I regretted having wished that. All of a sudden, my parents were dead, my brother and I were on the run, and I felt like it was all my fault. Like I had somehow wished it into being. And look at our lives now. What I wouldn't give for even a quiet couple of weeks. And I'm sure you must feel the same way."

Cas smiled and nodded. He kissed her on the forehead. She always understood. He loved her so much.

"We are meant to be whatever our Father wishes us to be, and we must do whatever it is that He requires us to do," Cas said to her. "But, in the final analysis, I would not change anything. Our paths came together because of who and what we became, and who we are now. And in less than two weeks, we will be married."

Gail smiled. Less than two weeks. She could hardly believe it. She turned around to look at his face. "We really are going to get married, aren't we, Cas? I'm not just imagining that, right?"

"It is me who has imagined this, for my entire existence," he told her. "All of those years, I wished for my one true companion. All of those prayers, unanswered. And then, there you were. We will marry, and I will never be apart from you again."

He kissed her, and she kissed him back, and it felt as if there were even more stars that twinkled in the night sky when their lips came together.

"Maybe we should just chuck it all, and raise a few sheep," Gail said, smiling. "There's a lot to be said for serenity, isn't there?"

As if on cue, Cas's cell phone rang. They looked at each other and laughed. Cas checked the Call Display. Dean.

"Sammy and I are ready to go home," he told Cas.

Cas hung up and took Gail's hand. "The children need a ride home," he quipped, and she laughed again.

"Thank you for taking me here," she said to him. "It was all too brief, but it was a nice way to leave Egypt."

Cas agreed, and that was why he had done it. So much that they'd experienced here had been negative that he'd wanted to leave one good memory in her mind. He took her hand and winked them out of the desert.

Lucifer was agitated. He and Rowena were back in the States now, and he was aware that Castiel had acquired the Earth Tablet.

"He invoked the Plagues," Lucifer said to Mark disbelievingly. "He had all the first-borns killed." Lucifer had been shocked by Castiel's actions. His Brother had long had a reputation for being a ruthless killer, but this was supposed to be a kinder, gentler, wimpier Castiel that Lucifer was dealing with these days. Lucifer was convinced he would be so easy. When Lucifer had come to the bunker, Castiel had unwittingly offered up his soul to Lucifer on a silver platter in his pathetic eagerness to have her forget all about his transgressions. And now the Angels were engaged, soon to marry. Gail was Castiel's weak spot, all right, but she seemed to be his strength, as well. Lucifer had screwed with the pair, but instead of weakening their bond, what he'd done had somehow strengthened it.

"How did he find out about the Earth Tablet?" Lucifer asked Mark. "Are you certain that Luke is not helping him?"

"Luke is not his source, Sir," Mark answered quickly. "He remains loyal to you."

"If he's so loyal to me, why does he not tell me where the remainder of the Tablets are?" Lucifer said, raising his voice.

"He does not tell you because he cannot," Mark answered simply. "In the same way as you are not able to approach the Tablets, Luke is prohibited from telling you where they are. Our Father's security system."

Lucifer was beyond frustrated. He had no reason to believe that Castiel would not be able to lay his hands on the remaining Tablets, once he found out where they were. And since Lucifer was warded from the actual Tablets themselves, he either had to cut off his enemy's source of information or try to find out where the group was going to go next, so that he could try to thwart them.

He turned to Rowena. "Do you have your target picked out?" he asked her.

"Yes, I do," she said. "Give me a couple of hours with him and I will have all of their little secrets. You'll just have to flush him out for me, so I can get to him."

"I can do that," Lucifer said, smiling.

It was already morning in America when Cas and Gail brought Sam and Dean back to the bunker.

Frank and Jody were having breakfast with Barry and Tommy when the quartet walked into the kitchen.

"How was the movie set?" Frank asked them, lifting Robbie off his lap. Robbie had been extra clingy since he and Jody had gotten back, and Frank was trying to get the kid to mellow out a bit. While he understood how insecure Robbie must be feeling, Frank wanted the boy to be a bit stronger and more resilient. Maybe they were off the hook for the next Tablet, but God only knew what they might have to do to get the others, or where they might have to go. It was a damn good thing Barry and Tommy were here. They had done a great job with Robbie. He was happy and healthy, and he was learning a lot. Tommy had gotten it into his head to teach Robbie some theology, as well, so that he could understand what his mother and grandfather had been, and what they had stood for.

"It's a slippery slope," Tommy had said. "I know he's very young, but he's also very bright and intuitive, and he seems to know a lot more than we give him credit for. I just think it's important for him to have a little spiritual education, considering his background. But I'm not pushing any agenda on him, Frank, and we're not discussing any particular religion over the other, merely what each one believes."

Frank had shrugged. He and Jody were fine with it. Tommy was proving to be a patient and competent teacher, and Robbie obviously had a great deal of affection for him and Barry. Thank God these men were in their lives, Frank thought. Quite honestly, when he was younger, Frank had always been a little leery of homosexuals. He'd never had any particular dislike for them, he'd just never understood their lifestyle. But now, he realized how closed-minded he'd been. These men had the same type of belief system that Frank himself did, and Tommy's sense of humour was just as irreverent as Frank's. He and Barry were quality men, Frank realized, and if they happened to kiss and hug each other every now and then, Frank was OK with that. They never did anything too intimate in front of Robbie, or in front of anyone else. Hell, Cas and Gail were much more demonstrative. So Frank and Jody were just fine with Barry and Tommy being surrogate parents for Robbie.

"Well, we're heading off to bed," Sam said, yawning. "Try to tone down all the wild partying, OK?" he added, grinning. He was kidding, of course. Things had seldom been quieter and more domestic here in the bunker. Barry kept the kitchen spotless, and he had promised Sam and Dean a fabulous meal when they woke up.

Cas and Gail said goodnight to the Winchesters, and goodbye to the others. They hurried to their room and threw some clothes into a suitcase. Death had told Castiel that time was of the essence. The window to acquire the Heaven Tablet was closing, and they were heading straight to Rome.

So, as Sam and Dean headed off to their rooms to get some sleep, the Angels winked themselves to Rome. They checked into a modest hotel and walked to a tiny bistro that was located a few blocks from their hotel.

Cas ordered a glass of chianti for himself and for Gail, telling the server they needed a few minutes to decide on something to eat. "Is there anything you can recommend?" he asked the man.

"It's all good," he told them. "But it's a good thing you came here when you did. They're basically digging up this whole street, to make room for a new shopping mall."

Cas smiled. "So I've heard. That's why we came here today."

The server shrugged. "Time marches on, I guess. This place has been around since practically the beginning of time. I suppose it might be time for a change. Well, I'll give you a few minutes to decide."

Cas lifted his glass of wine to Gail in a toast. "Here's to progress," he said to her.

Gail lifted her glass and touched it to his. "I'll drink to that."

They had a sip together, and then Cas motioned for the server. "We know what we want," he said, and he touched the server's forehead. The quest for the acquisition of the Heaven Tablet had begun.

\- END OF BOOK 16. -


End file.
